


14 Days

by theultimatezb



Category: Rookie Blue
Genre: F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-11
Updated: 2014-10-07
Packaged: 2018-02-12 18:32:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 54,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2120349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theultimatezb/pseuds/theultimatezb
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>[Season 5 finale spoilers. Read it at your own risk.] Gail expected shock, confusion, and even disagreement. What she did not expect, was for Holly to drop her own bomb right in her face. It blew up in her face and Gail just stood there, unsure of what to do or what to say.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, I need to get the finale out of my system so I decided to write this. Mistakes are all mine, hope you'll stick around and support me :)

**Day 1**

The talk Gail and Holly had last night at the precinct did not go as Gail expected it to. She expected shock, confusion, and even disagreement. Disagreement to her ability to raise a child. Disagreement for Holly to be a part of her peculiar little soon-to-be family. What she did not expect, was for Holly to drop her own bomb right in her face. It blew up in her face and Gail just stood there, unsure of what to do or what to say. After what felt like forever, Gail finally found it in herself the ability to move and got the fuck out of the locker room, running into Chris and demanded a ride back to the apartment.

Gail woke up early the next morning, having close to no sleep at all last night. Her mind ran at a hundred miles per second, from Holly to Sophie, from Sophie to Holly. Holly tried to reach Gail on her phone last night but Gail being Gail, she ignored the calls and proceeded to lay in bed drowning in her thoughts. Holly's moving to San Francisco. For good. And she wanted Gail to go with her. That is absolutely out of the question.

Gail lifted her arms and dropped them against her blanket in surrender before finally deciding to get out of bed, since she doubted she could get anymore sleep in before her shift started. Old Gail would've went to the Penny last night to get hammered, then continue to ignore and stay away from Holly for two weeks till she leaving the city. But new Gail, newly matured and grown Gail, decided to brush her teeth, take a shower, put some clothes on and make her way to Holly's. They both needed to sit their asses down and have a proper talk. At least that's what Gail thought. After 10 minutes of cab ride to Holly's townhouse, Gail trudged up the front steps like a woman on a mission. It took four knocks on the door before a sleepy Holly appeared in front of Gail.

"Gail, what are you doing here so early? It's 7 in the morning. Some of us need to sleep." Holly sounded mildly irritated. Okay, it might've been a little too early.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize the time until you told me. We need to talk." It looked like Gail wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Okay, fine. You wanna go for breakfast at the diner around the corner? We can talk there." Holly took a step back for Gail to enter.

"Yeah, sure."

Holly walked past Gail to go back upstairs to her bedroom. "Alright give me 10 minutes to get ready."

Gail went over to the couch and took a seat. She took a minute to look around the living room. She loved coming to Holly's place. She always felt safe and cosy when she used to spend her time here with Holly, even before they were together officially. Gail's going to miss place as much as she'll miss Holly. After 10 minutes as promised, Holly came back down and grabbed her belongings before leading Gail out the door. They walked in silence all the way to the diner, although it only took two minutes.

Right after they ordered, Gail got straight to the point. "Look, I'm really sorry about last night. I wasn't expecting it and I didn't know how to react."

"I also wasn't expecting to hear you say you're ready to be a mom, but you didn't see me bolting. Not to mention my phone calls." Holly fired back. Like Gail, Holly had little sleep and her mind was in a huge mess.

"I-I know. I'm sorry. But I'm here now, aren't I? I'm really to talk now." Holly remained quiet, waiting for Gail to speak first.

Gail decided to start off easy. "Tell me about the job in San Francisco?"

"Well, the people at a medical facility over there contacted me a week ago, mentioned that they've been following my work and they read my books. They offered me a position at the facility as a research scientist, a high budget research grant and a huge pay bump. Pretty much a dream come true to have the resources to make scientific breakthroughs."

"I'm happy for you, really. Congratulations, Hols. You deserve it." Gail smiled. She really was happy for Holly, but at the same time her heart clenched at her words.

Holly reached for Gail's hand. "Thanks. For all that it's worth, I really wanted you to come with me. I do miss you, Gail."

Gail reciprocated the touch, squeezing Holly's hand back. "I miss you too."

"So what's with you adopting a kid?" Holly's tone was more curious than judgemental.

Gail shrugged. "This is what I want to do. I want to be a mom. Like I told you last night, I've thought long and hard about this. Sophie is a great kid. I can't bear to see her get tossed into the system. The adoption might not go through but I had to try."

Holly did not respond immediately. She took a moment to collect her thoughts, she didn't want to come off as though she's not supportive of Gail's decision, although it might sound insane at the moment.

"Okay. As long as you're sure." Holly nodded.

"Wait, that's it?" Gail lifted a hand, palm facing upwards. That wasn't the respond she anticipated.

"What's it?" Confusion evident in Holly's tone.

"No 'are you crazy, Gail? Can you handle it? You're not ready to be a mom yet' talk?"

"Do you want to have that talk?" Holly questioned.

"Not really." Gail shook her head, looking down at the food that just arrived.

"And I don't want to have to give that talk. I don't think you need it. You're an adult, you make your own decisions. If you think you're fit to be someone's mother, then I'm sure you'll do great. Besides, Pecks can handle anything, right?" Holly ended her mini speech with her lopsided grin.

Holly continued to surprise Gail, in a good way. No doubt the brunette is the most wonderful person Gail's ever met, but to witness such level of acceptance from her made Gail's heart clench even more. She's going to lose Holly soon, and there's nothing she can do about it. Gail felt tears in her eyes, trying to hold herself together.

Gail grabbed Holly's hand again, sincerity in her tone. "Thank you, Holly."

"You're welcome."

Gail cleared her throat, willing the lump that formed inside to go away. "Listen, I finish my shift at 8, why don't we have dinner together?"

"Sure, I'll be at my office tying up loose ends before I leave for San Francisco. It'll only take the afternoon so why don't you come over after and I'll make you dinner as promised the other day? That bottle of Barolo's still unopened."

"Sounds great." Gail nodded and they went back to eating their breakfast. The rest of their conversation remained light and casual before Holly drove Gail to the precinct and then to the morgue.

* * *

Gail knocked on the same door the second time that day. This time it took a lot faster for Holly to open it. Gail walked through the door and headed straight towards the kitchen, where the source of the savoury smell came from.

Holly trailed behind the blonde, "I made you my famous chicken casserole, the last time I made it you said you loved it. Do you? Still love it, I mean? And chocolate brownies for dessert. I have ice cream and whipped cream, you can choo—"

Gail silenced the brunette the only way she knew how. She pulled Holly close to her and pressed her lips against Holly's. Holly wasn't sure why she was rambling. It was all fine and dandy until Gail showed up and nerves started to take over. Holly took a few seconds to realize that Gail was kissing her and then started to kiss her back. Gail gently pushed away from Holly before things got heated up between them. They both took a moment to calm their breathing, hands still holding onto each other.

"You just had to stop talking." Gail smirked. Holly smiled at Gail's words too. She remembered that day in the interrogation room like it was yesterday.

"Okay, let's just eat dinner." Holly moved towards the oven to take the casserole out.

"Do you need help?"

"How about you take the wine out of the fridge and pour us a glass?" Gail nodded and headed for the fridge.

During dinner, neither said much. Just asking about each other's day and then resumed to the task at hand, finishing their dinner in silence. Holly felt the need to clear the air some more. She's leaving for San Francisco in two weeks, yet here they are having dinner like nothing ever happened. Their talk this morning wasn't good enough. After dinner and loading up the dishwasher, Holly turned and saw Gail leaning against the kitchen counter. Gail also realized that they had to continue their talk and they silently agreed that Holly would be the first one to talk this time.

"What are we doing here, Gail? Having dinner, drinking wine, like everything's normal between us. I'm leaving in two weeks and you're adopting a kid. And all these feelings… they're not helping." Holly started the conversation feeling frustrated, frustrated at herself for taking the job without talking to Gail, frustrated that she let herself think that Gail would drop everything and go to San Francisco with her. What was she thinking? But now she's feeling defeated. She stared at her toes and sighed heavily. A stray tear fell from her eye and down the kitchen floor. Gail moved closer to Holly and tipped her chin up to look into dark brown eyes. She wiped away the tears that started to fall and her heart broke.

Gail could only muster up a single word. "Stay."

Holly thought about it. She really did. But it's her dream to create something to make the world a better place. And the people that offered her the job told her that once she agreed, there's no going back. Not until her contract ends, anyway. Holly felt so torn at that moment.

"I can't. I've thought about it, believe me, I did. But I can't go back on my word."

"I understand." Gail said in disappointment. She had to at least give it a try, right?

Holly lunged forward and enveloped Gail in a tight hug as tears started to flow freely. "I'm so sorry, Gail."

"It's okay, Hol. I understand, I really do." Gail put her arms around the brunette.

Gail rubbed soothing circles on Holly's back, unwilling to let go. "Let's just make use of the time left before you leave."

Instead of answering, Holly turned her head inwards into Gail's neck and started laying soft kisses there. Gail's breath hitched and she hugged Holly even tighter, pulling her closer. Holly then moved on to Gail's jaw, chin, and finally her lips. Somewhere in her hazy mind, Gail was able to find what's left of her restraint and lucidity. She pulled away slightly and asked Holly, "Are you sure you wanna do this?"

Holly nodded, certainty evident in her brown eyes. "Yes."

Gail wasn't sure how it happened, but they managed to get to Holly's bedroom between the stripping, pulling and kissing of each other. They fell onto the bed with Gail on top of Holly. Gail stopped what she was doing and both hands came up to stroke Holly's face. Both women looked deeply into the other's eyes and it conveyed everything they felt for each other, to each other. No words needed. It was overwhelming. And before Gail could let her unshed tears fall, she captured Holly's lips with her own. Trusting Holly with her own body as she always did, they both set sail into the night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Day 2**

It was Holly who woke up first. The sounds of birds chirping and cars driving up and down the street on the usually lively Saturday morning in the neighbourhood woke the brunette up and reminded her of the head of short blonde locks currently laying on her shoulder. Her mind replayed the night they shared together and a smile crept up on her face. It had been too long since the two of them got together, Holly missed Gail greatly throughout the past few weeks. Last night, emotions and vulnerability were laid bare by both women. Gail touched Holly with a great amount of care and gentleness that almost stunned Holly. It was definitely a night to remember. Then Holly thought about the new job in San Francisco and her mood went from contentment to depression in a split second. It was as if Gail had the ability to sense the waves of despair coming off of Holly because she was awake in an instant. Gail opened her eyes and stared at Holly without making any sudden movements. She just stared at the other woman for a few moments before finally deciding to speak up.

"Good morning. What's wrong?"

Gail startled the brunette, causing her to jump slightly. "N-Nothing. Just thinking."

"Stop thinking." Gail started trailing light kisses over Holly's shoulder and neck.

"I… I'm trying." Holly flashed a weak smile at Gail.

"Let's just live in the moment. YOLO, whatever the kids call it nowadays. Carpe diem or some shit." Holly let out a genuine laugh, causing Gail to smile too.

"I have a question." Holly laced their fingers together over the blanket, carelessly rubbing her thumb over Gail's index finger.

"What is it?"

Holly hesitated for a second before asking her question, "Do you think… we'll still be as happy as we were during our honeymoon phase if the whole fiasco at the Penny hadn't happened?"

Gail raised her eyebrow, having serious relationship conversations in bed is not her forte. "Hmm… I don't know. Even if I didn't hear what Boobjob said or if she actually kept her mouth shut, I'm sure I'll create some other emergency situation to get out of the tree."

"Right. That cat analogy. I'm really sorry about what happened that night. I should've defended you. You know I don't agree with what she said, right? We were really having fun, but what I'm feeling for you is more than that, and I didn't want to let Lisa know that before I told you."

"I know, Holly. I was waiting for the other shoe to drop. I wasn't convinced that I deserve you. Deserve this relationship. I just let my ears listen to what my mind wanted to and over-reacted because I know I'm out of your league. To have someone else say it and confirm that it is the truth gave me the perfect opportunity to create the emergency situation."

Holly held tightly onto Gail's hand, afraid that if she ever let go, Gail would leave this bed and never come back. "But, Gail, you are _not_ out of my league. I admire you, so much. To have the courage to put on that vest and protect the innocents every day? To make the streets safer? That is something I don't think I can do. You need to know that I respect you and your job. I would _never_ belittle you or the police force. And I think I'm the one who doesn't deserve to be with _you_." She squeezed the blonde's hand to emphasize her words.

Gail smiled shyly. She dislike kind words and praises, not because she doesn't appreciate it, but because she wouldn't know how to react. "Even if that night never happened I guess it had to happen in some other way in order for me to learn that I can actually stop running and embrace this amazing feeling and woman right in front of me, before it's too late."

But it was too late, though. And they both knew it. They finally realized how big of an idiot they both were, that a lot of it could've been prevented had they just _talk_ to each other, get all the bullshit out of the way. Thinking back and looking at how silly and ridiculous the situation had been, it wasn't one of Holly's finest moments, she thought to herself. Both adults could've handle it better, _sooner_. Noticing Holly's silence, Gail decided to break her out of whatever thoughts she was having and bring her back to the present.

"C'mon, I'm hungry. Let's go make me some breakfast." Gail tugged gently at their intertwined hands.

Holly shrugged, "You can make your own breakfast."

"But I'm your guest! Make me breakfast and I'll repay you later. Back in this bed." Gail finished in a sultry tone and bit gently on Holly's shoulder.

Holly tried to look annoyed and rolled her eyes, but the smile that formed on her face betrayed her. "You play dirty, Peck. Fine fine, let's go."

Both dressed in minimal clothing, they headed down to the kitchen hand in hand.

"What would you like to have?" Holly asked while looking into her fridge.

"I'm fine with anything, just not—"

"Eggs."

"And I'm allergic to—"

"Tomatoes. Got it." Holly nodded her acknowledgement.

Gail was surprised, and then not so surprised after she processed what just happened. Of course Holly knows these things. It's Holly.

"Alright, I have some more pumpkin flavoured pancake mix left, you mind?" Holly turned to look at Gail after looking into the kitchen cabinet.

"Sure, sounds good." Gail decided to make herself useful and started making coffee for the both of them.

After having their breakfast and coffee on the kitchen counter, Gail went to take a seat on the couch in the living room and picked up the remote to switch the TV on. After a few minutes of surfing through the channels and finding nothing that interests her, she turned it off and leaned further back into the cushion and closed her eyes. Holly joined her on the couch a minute later, shuffling closing to Gail and they shared the comfortable silence of Saturday morning, Gail trying to let the moment sink in, to cherish this kind of peace she used to take for granted with Holly when they first got together a few months ago.

Holly was the first break the silence, "Not to burst this bubble, but don't you have somewhere to be? The city needs their favourite blonde cop to protect its streets."

"I have the weekend off." Gail opened her eyes.

"That's nice. You wanna stick around?" Holly tried not to sound too hopeful, she didn't want to push the blonde.

Gail nodded. "That was the plan."

Relieved, Holly smiled. "So what do you want to do?"

"I don't know. What do you want to do? You're the one leaving in two weeks." Gail tried to sound as casual as possible, no bite in her words. She didn't want to make Holly upset and ruin whatever time they had left.

"As long as you're with me I'm fine with staying in." Holly's eyes shined with adoration as she showed Gail her trademark lopsided grin, knowing Gail loved it.

Gail rolled her eyes. "You're such a sap, Hols."

"How about you repay your debt right now and we'll order in tonight?" Holly suggested, her tone and grin mischievous as her hand slid up Gail's thigh.

Gail's breathing quickened. That's what Holly did to her. A simple touch enough to ignite a fire within her. None of her boyfriends in the past had this kind of power over her. "S-sounds good to me."

* * *

After the second round of riding out their waves of pleasure and heavy panting, they laid side by side trying to calm their breathing and the pounding in their chests. Gail was glad they fuelled up before resuming their activities from last night. She turned to look at the brunette, whose eyes were closed.

Gail poked Holly's arm to check if she's asleep or not. "Hey nerd, you alive?"

Holly opened her brown eyes, looking into blue ones next to her. "Just closing my eyes for a minute."

"I thought my performance was so amazing that you passed out on me."

Holly's laughter echoed around the bedroom. _God, I'm gonna miss that laugh,_ Gail thought to herself. "You wish, Peck. If anything I thought you were going to burst my eardrums by the way you screamed my name earlier." Holly raised her eyebrows playfully at the blonde. She waited for a snarky comeback, but when she received none, she saw a very flustered Gail Peck trying to hide her blushed face against her neck.

"Have I rendered you speechless, officer?" Holly grinned, although Gail couldn't see it with her face buried in the brunette's neck, Gail managed to hear her smile in her words.

"What you and I share cannot be put into words." Gail confessed quietly. It's true, though. What Gail and Holly had together put all of their exes into shame. Gail wasn't sure if she'll ever meet someone like Holly ever again. They connected on such a deep level, Gail had never witnessed something like that with another human being until Holly came strolling into her crime scene and her life that many months ago. Holly will probably be the only person who will make her feel this way, so completely and utterly speechless. Unless there are other bespectacled nerds with long dark hair carrying a lunchbox walking around the city? No words could describe how she felt about the brunette. Well, she knew what words probably could, those three little words that's been swimming in her mind lately. More than one occasion, Gail found the words almost rolling out of her tongue, glad that it didn't. This was not the time to say it out loud. Holly would be leaving soon and they don't need any more drama between them.

This time, it was Holly who kept quiet. Her heart skipped a beat at Gail's admission. She was positive she felt the same way about Gail too, and surprised that Gail was the one to spill those heartfelt words. Holly's heart clenched in her chest. Boy, she wasn't sure if she could put herself on that plane in two weeks' time. Not with Gail being so sweet and lovely and open about her feelings. It would take all of her willpower to do so.

"I know," Was all Holly could bring herself to say before pulling the blonde up to kiss her deeply.

After pulling away from each other to catch their breaths, Gail decided to change the subject before things get too emotional. "Hey, why haven't you told me about your interest in working with dead people? Was that something you wanted to do since you were a kid? I hope not, because that's really morbid even for you, Holly."

"That's because you didn't ask, babe." The term of endearment came out of her before she even realized it. But judging by Gail's lack of reaction, it wasn't an issue. It felt natural, too. Holly continued. "Well, I knew since young that I'll probably be doing something involving medicine. When I was in my last year of high school, I started reading up on cardiothoracic surgery and the mysteries and wonder of the human heart and got really intrigued. I honestly thought I'd be heading towards that direction. Then during med school, I attended a talk about forensic pathology and it changed my life. I'm serious. Something about solving puzzles, giving families closure and helping the police solve crimes. It opened my eyes to something I'd never even considered before. Then after my residency I went on to continue a fellowship in forensic pathology. So that's how I got here. Satisfied with my answer?"

Gail nodded. She was in awe of the woman beside her, how she lit up by talking about her dreams and aspirations. If Holly decided to stay here in Toronto with Gail, Gail would never forgive herself for denying Holly this new opportunity. She deserved it from all the hard work and effort she poured into her work.

"You were reading about nerdy science stuff since high school? Why am I not surprised."

"Well we all have our own interests and hobbies. Mine just happened to be a lot more boring and nerdier than others." Holly shrugged. "I'm sure you spent your childhood and teenage years skipping classes and playing video games."

Gail put a hand on her chest feigning hurt. "Wow, thanks for think so highly of me, Hols. I'll have you know that I was a straight A student all the way through high school and college. Not that I had any other choice. Elaine Peck would've shot me with her own gun if I ever failed to live up to her expectations. At least I managed to be one of the cool kids too. No need to be one of those nerdy bookworms just because I aced all my exams."

"Whatever." Holly tried to ignore Gail's jab and continued, "It must be hard, though, living up to such high expectations?"

Gail started brushing her fingers up and down Holly's arm. She was never really that cuddly with anybody. Not until Holly came along. "Not really. It only started to be a real pain in the ass once I graduated from college and when my mom signed me up for the police academy without my consent. That was when the expectations and pressure started to pile up. When I was young, I didn't really needed to study too hard. I absorb and understand things fast. That's probably why my mom made me learn different languages since young. I got off easy. Steve struggled during his school years. He hated going to school. So when he finally finished college, he was glad to sign up for the academy and become a cop."

"And you're not? Happy to be a cop, I mean?"

"I'm not unhappy, I just never really let myself think about being anything else other than a cop. My whole life, I've been trained by my parents to become a cop. It's a rite of passage, it's mandatory. If you're a Peck, you're a cop. No arguments."

Holly found this really sad, that Gail wasn't allowed to pursue her dreams, that she refused to even let herself dream and wonder about the possibilities of doing something else that doesn't involve the law enforcement. She was grateful her parents - before they died in a car accident - and her grandmother, they let her live a carefree childhood and gave her the freedom to do or be anything she wanted. Holly knew about Elaine Peck and her expectations of Gail to become a white shirt as fast as possible, she probably learnt that from Gail in the early stages of their friendship. Up until now, she never really thought about Gail's nightmare of a childhood. She truly felt bad for Gail.

"Well, we'd never met if you weren't a cop. So let's be grateful for that."

"I am _very_ grateful for that." Gail reached up and lightly kissed Holly on the lips.

* * *

They took a nap after their heart to heart session till the sun sets and the glow of the street lamps started to creep through the curtains of Holly's bedroom. This time it was Gail who woke up first and she took the initiative to order some Thai food from Holly's favourite restaurant a couple of blocks away from her place. After she placed her order Gail went to Holly's bathroom to have a quick shower before the food arrives. She put on her favourite Holly's sweatpants and shirt just in time for the delivery guy to knock on the door. She paid the guy and moved to the kitchen to put the food in the microwave before heading back to Holly's room to wake her, not before pausing at the door frame to look at the naked, sleeping Holly in front of her. Holly was laying on her front, hands tucked under her pillow, dark wavy hair spread out over the sheets and pillows. The smooth tanned skin on her back out on display for the blonde. Gail smiled. She worshipped that tanned skin last night and earlier in the day. She kissed and nipped and sucked on almost every inch of Holly's body. Gail took a moment to drink the beauty in. She's going to miss her so _so_ much, so much that it physically hurts even though Holly haven't even left yet. Gail wiped away a tear that fell over her left cheek and walked towards the bed to sit beside Holly. She let her fingers comb through thick wavy hair and pushed the hair that was covering Holly's neck to the side, kissing it softly to rouse the brunette.

"Hey, sleepyhead. Time for dinner." Gail whispered into Holly's ear.

A wide smile slowly formed on Holly's face. It feels nice. To just _be_ with Gail. "Hmm… what are we having?"

"That Thai food you love so much."

Holly's lifted her head up from her pillow to look at Gail through heavy-lidded eyes. "Really?"

"Mhmm."

"You're the best," Holly reached forward to peck Gail on the lips before getting up.

"Of course I am. Why don't you go take a shower, the food's in the microwave, I can heat it up while you shower."

"Okay, thank you." Holly pecked Gail on the lips again and headed for the bathroom.

Halfway between inhaling her pad Thai and their shared shrimp salad, Gail's tongue decided to form words before her brain had time to catch up. For some unknown reason, she didn't know why she decided to bring it up now, of all the time she had spent with Holly that day.

"Listen, since I have tomorrow off too, and I haven't seen Sophie this week, I was wondering if you would like to come with me tomorrow?" Gail asked softly, unsure of Holly's response.

Holly took a moment to consider Gail's offer. This is big. And she knows it's important to Gail. Plus, she has been curious about the girl Gail was planning to adopt. She must be really special to the blonde.

"Sure, it would be my honour."

A beaming smile appeared on Gail's face. "Okay, I'm meeting Sophie in the afternoon, we could go together? If you want?"

"Of course." Holly nodded and added, "Why don't you stay another night? We could watch a movie and then tomorrow we'll go together."

"I would love to."

Gail was beginning to get excited for tomorrow. Two of her favourite people in the world getting the chance to meet. They finished their dinner in comfortable silence with the radio playing in the background. And as planned, with a movie loaded up on the player, Gail and Holly got comfortable on the couch cuddled up together for the night.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been really sleepy since the weekend to get anything done. I don't know much about adoption and religion, so please forgive me for all mistakes. Not sure if this turned out well since I wrote it half asleep on my bed. Please let me know what you think. Enjoy!

**Day 3**

"You ready?"

"Are _you_ ready? You're the nervous one, not me." Holly brought her hand up to Gail's shoulder before running it up and down the length of the blonde's arm in an attempt to calm her nerves. Gail wasn't sure what took over her. She was fine before hopping into the car. During the ride to Gail and Sophie's usual hangout spot, she started to wonder if bringing Holly along was a good idea or not. It might not be a good idea to introduce Holly to the little girl since she would be leaving soon. Something about bringing people into a kid's life – a recently orphaned kid, no less – without the certainty of them staying. _Shit, why haven't I thought about this last night?_ Gail berated herself.

It was like Holly read her mind. She knew what Gail was thinking, maybe this wasn't such a great idea after all. "It's okay, Gail. I can wait in the car or come pick you up once you guys are done."

But Gail really wanted Holly to meet this girl that swept her off her feet in the span of the last couple of weeks. She wanted to explain to Holly how important it was to Gail for that one person's opinions she truly value to witness just how magical Sophie was. But words failed her as it usually does. _Okay, a short meeting couldn't hurt, right?_

"No, I really want you to meet her."

Holly exhaled loudly and nodded. "Okay."

"Alright, let's go."

They walked the short distance to the bench where Sophie and the social worker Laura, were sitting. Laura pointed towards Gail and Holly's and Sophie's head immediately snapped to her left in order to see Gail. The smile that formed on the girl's face took Gail's breath away. Even after weeks of seeing that million dollar smile, she still couldn't get used to it. She'll probably never get used to it. And she doesn't want to get used to it.

Holly turned to look at Gail, and the look on the blonde's face was something she'd never seen before. She studied Gail's face. There was a look of adoration, kindness. Love, even. At that moment, Holly understood Gail's decision to adopt this child. The emotions Gail worn on her face spoke volumes and Holly was truly glad that she got to witness the bond Gail and Sophie shared. Nobody saw the look on Holly's face. But looking at Gail look at Sophie, Holly, too, had an emotion schooling her features. Pride.

Gail and Holly made their way toward the bench and Laura stood up to greet both of them.

"Hey Laura, hey Sophie, this is my friend Holly. Holly this is Laura, social worker at the home and this kid over here's Sophie."

Laura offered a hand out for Holly to shake and smiled, "Hi, nice to meet you, Holly."

"Hello, nice to meet you too." Holly greeted Laura before turning to face Sophie. "Hey Sophie, I'm Holly, it's so nice to meet you."

Sophie stood up then, whispered a soft 'Hi' to Holly before launching herself at Gail to give her a massive hug.

"Gail! I thought I wouldn't see you this week since we usually meet on Wednesdays."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world, kiddo. Just had a really busy week at work, that's all." Gail smiled.

Sophie nodded. "That's fine, you're here now. Let's go to the playground!" The girl took Gail's hand in her own and hesitated for a moment before grabbing Holly's with her other hand too. Gail smiled fondly at the action. Before the trio got to take a step towards the playground, Laura called for Gail.

"Hey, Gail, can I speak to you? It'll be quick."

Gail turned to look at Laura, then at Sophie and Holly. Holly nodded and led Sophie to the playground. "Let's go Sophie, Gail's going to catch up."

Gail smiled her thanks and took a seat next to Laura on the bench. "If this is about bringing Holly here, I'm sorry."

"No, it's not about that. I just wanted to let you know that the agency is starting to process your application. I want you to be prepared, it'll be a long and hard process. It might not even go through."

"I—I know. I've been reading up, making some changes in my life, trying to get myself ready and I know there's a huge possibility that it might be unsuccessful."

"Many people think that adopting a kid is like getting a pet. They get ahead of themselves, thinking they're ready to raise a child who has gone through so much, and many of them failed to even make it through the interviews and home study without having second thoughts. End up both the adults and the kids get disappointed. I just want you to be absolutely sure this is what you want to do."

"Yes. This is what I want. For both me and Sophie." Gail concluded the conversation in a resolute tone.

Holly saw Gail walking towards them and couldn't help but feel worried at Gail's frown. Holly continued to push Sophie who was on the swing, taking her eyes off of Sophie for a split second to glance at Gail as she stood next to her. "Everything okay?" She asked Gail after returning her attention back to the girl.

Gail smiled and tried to shake her thoughts away. "Yeah, everything's fine. Let me take over." Holly took a few steps back and decided to let it go for now since this was not the place or time to talk.

* * *

"Can we stay a little while longer? Please?"

Nobody could resist those puppy dog eyes, not even Laura the social worker. After spending some time at the park, Gail decided to call it a day because she didn't want to take too much of Holly's time away from her. The brunette probably needed all the time she could get to get her affairs in order for her new life and job in San Francisco.

Holly took her eyes off of the group for a second to soak in the nice weather. It was a great day to be out and about. Flowers were blooming, trees starting to take on a more vibrant shade of green and the sun shined brighter to celebrate the beginning of spring. She looked across the street and saw an ice cream parlour. A grin appeared on her face as a thought crossed her mind.

"Hey Sophie, do you like ice cream?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Why don't we all go and have some ice cream at the shop across the street? My treat?"

Sophie jumped in excitement for a few seconds before turning to Laura to seek for permission. Laura looked at her watch, contemplated for a moment before giving Sophie a kind smile in return and then looking between the two adults, "I have an appointment soon, but I'm sure it would be fine if you guys send Sophie back after." Laura seldom offer such freedom, but she genuinely liked the blonde and she's a cop, so that's always a plus.

After saying their goodbyes to Laura, the trio made their way across the street for some sweet treats. Holly and Sophie exerted a serious amount of consideration into the choice of cup, cone or waffle bowl, the number of scoops and the flavours and toppings as if their lives depended on it. Gail grinned widely at the scene unfolding in front of her. It was cute, the two of them looked like they were on a mission, partners in crime looking to create the perfect combination. Gail told herself that this was what she could have gotten if Holly wasn't leaving and Sophie's adoption was successful. It was as if she just got a taste of what her future could have looked like, but once they drop Sophie off back at the home, once Holly leaves, all this would be taken away from her. She immediately shook her head in an attempt to get rid of those thoughts.

After Gail's weak insistence of paying – because Gail Peck would never turn down free food – for the sake of being polite in front of Sophie, they headed to the open area to enjoy their ice cream. After the brunette and the little girl voiced the satisfaction of their choices, they ate in comfortable silence. But it doesn't last long.

"Holly, are you a police officer like Gail?"

"No, I'm a doctor." Holly replied the girl with a smile on her face. Sophie took a while to gather her thoughts and her next question. Gail was worried about the sudden look of seriousness on the girl's face.

"Oh you work at the hospital?"

"No, I work at a lab near the police station where Gail works at to help the officers solve crimes."

"But you're a doctor, just like the ones at the hospital?"

Holly nodded. "Yeah."

"So… why didn't the doctors save my mom?"

The spoonful of ice cream on Holly's was halfway to her mouth when she heard Sophie's next question. She immediately felt Gail tense beside her and put a hand on her knee and squeezed reassuringly, although she had absolutely no idea how she was going to respond to that. Holly then took a deep breath to collect her thoughts, searching for the right words for the 8-year-old. She looked at Sophie and noticed the cross necklace around her neck. It was a gift from Sophie's mother.

"Sophie, do you believe in God?" Holly decided it was probably best if she doesn't explain the cause of death to the little girl.

Sophie brought a hand up to toy with the necklace. "Yeah, mom and I used to go to church."

Holly hoped that whatever she was going to say would be good enough for Sophie. "Well, God saw that your mom was in so much pain that day and he didn't want you to see her suffer, because that would've broke your heart and he decided to take it all away by bringing her up to heaven along with him."

"Yes, it would break my heart to see my mom in pain. Is she still suffering now?"

"No, God's taking good care of her now, and I'm sure your mom is looking out for you, smiling down from heaven because you're so strong. She'll be so proud of you." Holly scooted over to give the girl a hug. Sophie wrapped her arms around her for a long time before letting go. Gail on the other hand, had tears in her eyes and looked away to wipe them dry before they could roll down her cheeks.

Holly was not a religious person, but she respects other people's beliefs too. As a doctor, she look at scientific explanations, facts and statistics. The one time she tried to seek comfort and solace beyond probabilities and data was when her parents died. She tried to pray, though she wasn't sure to whom or what, a desperate attempt for her parents to be okay. She knew Sophie needed it at that moment, needed the strength and faith to pull her through this incredibly difficult time.

When they finally pulled up in front of the home, Holly and Gail got out of the car to say goodbye to Sophie. They each got a hug from the girl, a longer one for Holly and the brunette's heart melted.

"Will I be seeing you soon?"

"Um, I hope so. I'll be leaving town for a job soon." Holly looked at Gail who just remained quiet.

Sophie looked down in slight disappointment. _Maybe this wasn't a great idea after all,_ Gail thought. "Will you come back and visit?"

"I'll certainly try my best. Stay awesome, okay? And do me a favour, look after Gail for me, somebody needs to keep her in line and I think you're the best person for the job."

"Don't worry, I will."

* * *

The car ride back to Holly's was quiet. Gail made a beeline towards the kitchen right after the front door opened and took a bottle of beer out of the fridge. She knew where the bottle opener was and quickly pulled the drawer open to retrieve it. After emptying half the bottle down her stomach, she turned to look at Holly, who was staring at her sympathetically because it's _Holly_ , she always knows what's going on and what's running through Gail's head, so she just waited patiently for the blonde's impending outburst.

"I'm great with kids. I know that. But I'm great with kids when I only have to spend hours or maybe a day with them. How am I going to take care of Sophie, to answer her tough questions, to console, to give her strength emotionally when I'm so emotionally stunted myself? I mean, look at what you did today, I don't think I would've been able to come up with what you said, at least not without running away to think about it for hours or even days. And I don't even go to church!" Gail looked at Holly as if her face would reveal the answers she so desperately seek.

Holly walked towards Gail and ran her hands up the blonde's neck and down to rest on her shoulders, giving her a squeeze on both sides. She made sure Gail was look into her eyes before she started talking. "Gail… I know you. I know you'll step up to the plate, you'll make sure you can be there for Sophie, both physically and emotionally. You're so, _so_ strong, Gail. You have to let yourself know that. If you truly wanted something, you never back down and you're willing go to hell and back to make sure you get it. Now, you need to have that attitude if you want to be with Sophie, to make her happy. Because I know you're loyal towards her. And loyalty means _a lot_ to you."

Gail broke away from Holly and started pacing. She took deep calming breaths and stopped her pacing in front of the other woman. "Okay. I'm going to do this. I _can_ do this. For Sophie." Gail added shortly after, "And for myself."

"It'll be alright."

"It'll be alright." Gail nodded and repeated Holly's words to seal it into her brain.

Holly moved closer to wrap her arms tightly around Gail to end her meltdown. Gail immediately returned the embrace and pressed their foreheads together, brushing her nose against Holly's. She smiled as she remembered this was Holly's habit whenever they hugged or kissed.

"Stay," Holly whispered into Gail's ear. "I'll make us dinner."

Gail nodded her head and kissed Holly's cheek. "Okay."

Gail wondered how long more they can stay in their bubble in the comfort of Holly's home before reality kicks in. Tomorrow she'll go back to work and time would start ticking again and Gail really wishes she could spend every second with Holly. She doesn't want to think about the withdrawal she'll have to face once Holly was gone. It could be hours or minutes before they finally broke apart but neither women cared. Gail pulled Holly to the couch and on her lap before she pressed her lips lovingly against the brunette's. Holly turned to position herself better so she could straddle Gail. Things got hot and heavy really quickly and Holly pulled away before it could escalate even further. She gave Gail's pouty lips a final kiss before settling onto her side.

"I like Sophie, she's a great kid."

"She likes you too."

"I understand why you want to adopt her. I see it now."

"See what?"

"The connection. The bond you two share."

Gail pressed a kiss on top of Holly's head to end the conversation. Her decision to bring Holly along today turned out great. She didn't know what she would've done if Holly wasn't there to answer Sophie's questions. She was glad Holly understood the reason why Sophie was important to her. Gail could explain to Holly how much she loves the kid, but it was something to be witnessed rather than to be told.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not much Gail and Holly stuff only until the end, but enjoy!

**Day 4**

While everyone else in the parade room scribbled down notes about the day's agenda and assignments on their notepad, Gail just relaxed into her chair and swiveled left and right while staring at Staff Sergeant Oliver. Oliver was never offended, and he never called her out for it. Whenever Gail did this – every single day in fact – while she might looked like she wasn't listening, he knew Gail heard every single word he said and had everything ingrained into her brain. No need for her to waste her energy writing them down.

"Alright with that being said, assignments are on the board. Serve, protect, and do not let me down! Especially you, Diaz!" Oliver hollered as the sea of blue uniformed cops made their way to the board and out the door. Gail took her time to stand up from her chair. Whoever she was riding with today would call for her soon enough.

Just as she predicted, Nick called out for her as she pushed away from the chair and turned to face the door. "Peck! You're riding with me today."

After 15 minutes of peacefulness in the squad car with no calls to attend to, Nick broke the silence. "You know, I kinda miss the times when you were chatty and making fun of people. I thought we said goodbye to 'moody Gail'. Spit it out, what's wrong?"

They both knew that Gail would spill whatever was on her mind to Nick. They've known each other for a long time and although Nick left her at the altar and emotionally cheated on her, she knew Nick would keep her secrets. Sometimes he gives great advice too, not that Gail would ever admit it out loud.

Gail looked out the window and sighed heavily. "Holly's leaving town soon. She's got a new job in San Francisco and she wanted me to go with her."

"And you're not." It was more of a statement than a question. Gail would never leave Toronto, not unless Elaine Peck disowned her.

Gail nodded. "We've been spending time together whenever we can. And I'm afraid to think about what will happen to me once she leaves because I—I'll… " Almost letting the l word roll out of her tongue, she immediately reeled it back in. She wasn't going to let Nick be the first person to know that she loves Holly. Definitely not Nick.

"You'll miss her? A lot?"

Another nod.

Nick looked over at her once he stopped at a light. "It'll take time. But it will get better."

Gail nodded again.

After their conversation, Nick and Gail got called to assist their fellow officers of 15 at a crime scene. When they arrived at the address given to them by the radio, Nick parked alongside the multiple squad cars in the parking lot of a convenience store. When Gail saw the unmarked police cars, it meant the detectives were on scene and it was probably going to be a homicide or gang related. Seeing Traci emerged from the back alley of the store confirmed that it was definitely homicide. Gail's duty was to stand by the police barriers and keep civilians from getting too close to the crime scene. Traci stood in the middle of the parking lot, probably waiting for forensics to arrive.

When the forensics SUV pulled up and a tall slender man, probably in his mid 40s got out of the vehicle holding his own lunchbox, Gail realized that the man was probably the new person taking over Holly's job. When Traci shot her a questioning look, Gail knew she would have to tell her the news.

Once forensics got what they needed and transported the body back to the morgue to begin the autopsy, Traci walked towards Gail and Nick as they leant on the back of their squad car.

"Where's Holly? Is she sick?"

Gail shook her head. When she wondered how many times she would have to tell people about Holly, it felt rather depressing. "She quit her job. She's leaving town for a new and better one in 10 days."

"For how long?"

"Don't know. Could be forever." Gail shrugged. She realized she haven't asked Holly if she were ever coming back to Toronto.

Traci saw the sadness in Gail's blue eyes and her heart went out for her friend. She knew Holly was really special to Gail. She truly thought Holly would be 'the one'. "Well, we have to celebrate. Bring her to the Penny! I'm sure many people would want to congratulate her. She's quite popular at 15."

"I'll see what I can do."

That was definitely something Gail cannot argue with. Holly Stewart was every detective and officer's go to forensics pathologist whenever they needed a crime scene to be looked at or evidence to be processed. Holly was great at her job, polite and friendly and not to mention, easy on the eyes too. Traci, Gail and Nick parted ways as the partners of the day returned to patrolling the streets.

* * *

"Cheers!"

"All the best!"

"We love you, Hols!"

"And we'll miss you!

Holly and a few of her closest friends – yes, even Lisa – met up for dinner and some follow-up drinks at a bar near the restaurant. All her friends had busy schedules, savings lives, earning big bucks, the usual. But when they received Holly's email about her new and prestigious job in San Francisco, they were all genuinely happy for her. They love Holly very much and a farewell get-together was mandatory. So they picked a date where everybody could make it. Rachel, Lisa and Holly met Diana and April during their first year of residency at the same hospital. It was the circumstances they were in that reluctantly brought each other into their own lives. From an outsider's perspective, one would question why the five of them were best friends. Having a group of driven and talented doctors with clashing egos as friends meant many arguments. Holly was always the middle man of the group, ready to intervene when things get too heated up. But that doesn't mean Holly would trade any of them for the world, and vice versa. They argue and they fight, but at the end of the day, they'll always have each other's backs. They've been through a lot and seen many things during their time as residents that brought them together for the long run. And now one of their own would be leaving the country, not knowing whether or not she'll return.

Rachel sighed, "Who's going to intervene whenever Lisa and April fight about who's got the best surgeries from now on?"

"Nope, not me. I value my life." Diana immediately shook her head.

Holly shook her head with a wide grin on her face. She's going to miss the girls so much. "Just let them fight it out until one of them needs saving, literally, and then you guys can decide who wants to perform resuscitation."

"Wow, thanks a lot you guys." Lisa playfully shoved at Diana's arm, who was sitting right beside her. The laughter from all five of them was loud enough to fill the whole bar.

It was April's turn to speak, "Seriously, though. We're going to miss you so much, Hols. And I'm really proud of you."

"Thanks, I'll miss all of you too. Who knows, maybe if I don't like it there I'll quit and come back to Toronto."

Lisa rolled her eyes before talking, "Don't be silly, Holly. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity! A lot of people would kill for the job. Don't screw up, okay?"

Holly shrugged and brought one of her fingers to circle around the rim of her wine glass absentmindedly. "I don't know, what if I don't fit in there?"

"Are you kidding? Everybody loves you! And San Francisco is practically queer Disneyland, tons of women would be queuing right outside your doorstep, I'm sure you'll fit in just fine."

"What if I don't want any other woman?" Holly mumbled to herself, thinking nobody could hear her in the crowded bar, but Lisa and her superhuman ears picked it right up.

"Don't tell me you're still hung up on that beat cop, Holly! You're _leaving_! In less than two weeks for fuck's sake! What's so special about her?" Feeling rather tipsy, Lisa it came out louder than she had wished.

Holly cringed at her words, but she composed herself before laying it on Lisa. She wasn't going to do this with Lisa again. "That cop has a name, Lisa. It's Gail. Gail Peck. And you need to shut the fuck up about her being a beat cop. She's so much more than that. She'd take a bullet for you anytime, any day because she's brave and loyal and kind to the people who needs saving so I need you to stop with this bullshit." Holly wondered why she hadn't said those things that night at the Penny.

"Alright, fine. I don't want to fight with you. Not when this is your party and you're leaving." Lisa sighed in defeat. Holly understood that Lisa was just looking out for her best interest, even though she goes about it the wrong way.

Rachel decided to take a different approach. She was the only one who saw what Holly and Gail shared was special and it wouldn't be easy to get over each other that fast. "Does Gail know that you're leaving?"

"Yeah."

"And how did she take it?"

"She was surprised at first. But now we're just taking it one day at a time, trying to keep things positive between us."

"Oh my God, you're sleeping with her!" Diana sat up straight and shouted the words loud enough for the nearby patrons to turn and look at their table. The blush on Holly's face was obvious.

"Really?" asked April.

When there was no answer from Holly, Rachel carried on with the conversation. "Do you think that's a good idea? I mean, you're leaving soon, and God knows for how long. I would hate for the two of you to get hurt."

Holly sighed heavily. This was not the kind of farewell party she was picturing it to be. "It's not like I haven't thought about it, Rach. It's just… it's so hard to stay away from her, you know? I just want to cherish the time I have left with her."

Rachel nodded understandably. She just had to trust Holly with this. April decided it was time to change the subject before things got too emotional and heavy. This was supposed to be a celebration, not a weeping party. She started talking about a patient she encountered at the ER that day, whose arm got stuck in a meat grinder. Everybody's attention turned toward her but Holly was having a hard to concentrating on April's story. Thoughts about Gail invaded her mind, like it usually did.

After a few more rounds drinks, the group decided to call it a night – because some of us need to wake up early in the morning to save lives, as April so humbly puts it – and headed out of the bar to exchange their long goodbyes with Holly and promises of staying in contact with each other. Lisa was the last to give Holly a hug. She knew she had to make nice with her best friend before she left.

"I'm really sorry what I said ruined your relationship with Gail. I was just looking out for you. Since med school I've only wanted what's best for you and the girls, to make you strive for the better. You're like my sister, Hols. I just want you to know that." Both women had tears in their eyes after Lisa's speech. When Holly chose to go into forensic pathology as her career path, Lisa couldn't fathom why Holly would do that. She knew about Holly's parents and how she made it through college and med school all on her own, not like the rest of the girls whose parents paid every penny of it. Holly could've chosen any other prestigious and well paid fields she desired and deserved to be in and Lisa was shocked that the top student of their class decided to venture out onto the path she was on. It wasn't jealousy that drove Lisa to say what she did that night at the Penny. Holly knew Lisa's actions for the past several years were acted under good intentions, although it might not come off as that sometimes. Nevertheless, Holly understood it all.

"Yes, I know. I love you like my own sister too." Holly offered a tearful smile. They took a moment to recollect themselves.

"Promise you'll call once you've settled down?" asked Rachel. Diana added, "Yeah, and if you ever need to talk to someone, just call us."

"I will, I promise."

Holly took a cab home alone since everyone else lived in the opposite side of town. She got a little emotional during the journey back home. A smiled formed on her face. She thought about the girls, the memories they shared when they first started working at the hospital, saving lives and being badasses in general. Not to mention the many big and small fuck ups they all made along the way. They were so young and so green.

While walking up the front steps of her townhouse, Holly's phone vibrated. She fished it out of her jacket pocket to see who it was. Her heart started racing when she saw that the message came from Gail.

_Are you home?_

_Yes._

_Star Wars at your place? I'll bring the snacks._

_Sure, can't wait._

_Great. See you in 20._

Holly took off her jacket and went to her bedroom to change into some sweatpants and t-shirt before making her way down to the couch to wait anxiously for Gail's arrival. Shortly after, Holly heard the knocking on the door and flew up from the couch to greet Gail. She held the door open long enough for Gail to enter and took Gail's duty bag from her shoulder to place it on the arm chair in the living room and the bag of snacks she bought on top of the kitchen counter while Gail took off her coat. After Gail hung up her coat, she walked over to where Holly was standing and slid into the brunette's arms. Gail pressed a warm kiss on Holly's lips, and then another, before she rested her head on Holly's shoulder. Gail sighed in comfort and breathed in the scent of Holly's long brown hair. It was awhile before Holly spoke.

"Hey."

Gail sighed again. "Hey."

"Long day?"

"Not really. Relatively painless shift aside from all the standing I had to do at a crime scene."

Holly hummed her acknowledgement and brushed her nose against Gail's cheek.

Gail spoke again, this time softer. "I missed you."

"I missed you too."

"How was dinner?" Gail almost forgot that Holly went out with her friends for dinner.

"It was nice."

Gail broke the embrace and moved towards the couch. She called over her shoulder at Holly, "Well let's get this marathon started then. Bring the snacks over!"

Holly looked into the bag of snacks Gail brought over and shook her head. _Cheesepuffs, of course._ She grinned at the way Gail unceremoniously plopped herself down on the couch, landing with a loud thud. What a great way to end the night, with her favorite blonde and movie franchise.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been out and about for the past few days and I wrote this on my iPad whenever I had a minute or two to myself. I hope you enjoy this chapter because I'm not sure it was well thought out and I'm not that great at writing intimate scenes (if what I wrote even counts as intimate). Feedback is always greatly appreciated :)
> 
> Mistakes are all mine. Enjoy

**Day 5**

"Do you really have to bring every single medical journal you own with you?" asked Gail as she looked over at Holly, who was placing her journals into a box.

After last night's Star Wars marathon that they were only halfway through, Gail started to doze off on Holly's shoulder. Holly woke her up gently and asked if she would want to stay the night, if not Holly could send her home, since the blonde could hardly open her eyes. Gail nodded and allowed Holly to lead her upstairs to the bedroom. When they woke up the next morning, Gail asked Holly what her plan was for the day. Holly said she had to start packing her things up as she didn't want to do it last minute and forget something. Gail offered her help since her shift was in the late afternoon.

"You'll never know when I might need these while doing my research. They're like my bible, it's better to be safe than sorry."

"Yeah whatever."

A book on one hand ready to be placed into the box, Holly turned to look at Gail. "Hey, thanks for helping me today. You didn't have to."

Gail shrugged. "Well, it seems like moving is kinda my thing lately."

Suddenly, Gail remembered the conversation she had with Traci yesterday, about how long Holly would be gone. She decided to bring it up now, it seemed like a good time to do so. "Traci asked me to ask you if you're up for drinks at the Penny. People at 15 know about your new job and they would like to buy you a drink."

"That's really nice of them. But they don't have to. It would be great to see everybody, though. How about tomorrow night? Your shift ends early right?" questioned Holly.

Gail nodded while putting books into a box. She wondered if Holly would have the time to read any of them in San Francisco. "Yeah. I'll let Traci know when I see her at the precinct later." She continued, but not without hesitating for a few seconds. "Do you know how long you're going to be there? I mean, are you ever coming back?"

Holly stopped what she was doing and focused her attention on Gail. She was wondering when Gail would bring it up. She dreaded the subject, but was glad that Gail cared enough to ask her about it. _Maybe Gail thinks there's still a chance for us?_ Holly realized that was probably wishful thinking. "To be honest, I really don't know. If things go well at the research facility, they might extend my contract for three more years. Well, that was what they told me."

Gail gulped, "How long before your initial contract expires?" She wasn't sure if she wanted to know.

"Two years." Holly shrugged and carried on with her task at hand. There wasn't much to pack since she would be provided with a furnished apartment. She thought about selling her townhouse, but decided against it and just rent it out since she wasn't in need of a large amount of money anytime soon. Holly's grandma passed away during her second year of residency. She inherited Grandma Caroline's house where she had spent her teenage years in. And before Grandma Caroline died, she was adamant about Holly selling the house and getting a place of her own, instead of staying in a tiny apartment with two other roommates. So she sold the house, donated a sum of money to charity, which she had been doing annually in Grandma Caroline's name, and got this townhouse. The money from the old house wasn't enough to cover the price of the new one, but Holly had paid it off once she started to receive monthly pay checks as Toronto's forensic pathologist. She didn't earn loads of money like Lisa did, but enough to lead a rather comfortable life. She would be eternally grateful to her grandma for providing her the luxury of her own home, one less thing to worry about as she embarked on her career. She packed what was needed and most of the furniture would stay in the house.

"And would you stay after that?"

"I really don't know. If I really like it there, I might just stay for a while." Holly honestly doesn't know how long she would be there for. Who knows, there might be another job offer in another country after that. The only way to find out was to go to San Francisco and figure out from there.

 _A while? 5 years isn't a while. It's half a decade._ Gail tried not to look too upset by that statement. And she doesn't even know what she was upset in the first place. It wasn't like they were still together or _something_. Long distance relationships never worked, at least not to her knowledge. And she couldn't ask Holly to return to Toronto after her 2 year contract if she really wanted to stay there. Holly could go anywhere for however long she wanted. No need permission from Gail. Being grown up Gail, she tried to change the subject before her mood took a turn for the worse. She looked around her to see what was needed to be placed in a box. She picked up the closest object on the floor.

"Holly, why would you want to bring a freaking Panini press to San Francisco with you? Scratch that, why would you even own a Panini press?" asked Gail incredulously.

Holly was glad for the sudden change of direction. But she wasn't sure what the blonde had against Panini presses. "What? I like Panini."

"I have never seen you use this."

"Even if you haven't seen me use it before doesn't mean I don't. Besides, it would be nice to bring something from home."

"Why don't you bring your coffee machine, if that's the reason?"

"That thing is too big. Why don't you take it?"

"And where would I put it? I don't have my own house, at least not right now anyway."

"Whoever rents this place would be lucky to enjoy it. That coffee machine makes good coffee. And it's expensive. They better not break it" Holly warned to no one.

Gail nodded. "Yes, it does make great coffee. I will miss it dearly."

An idea popped in Holly's mind. A great idea, actually. "Hey, why don't stay here? I know you've been looking for a house for when Sophie comes to live with you. You like it here, you should stay here."

Gail didn't know how to respond to that. Holly was always incredibly generous, even toward strangers. Sometimes she wondered if anyone took advantage of Holly because of her generosity.

"What, like for free?"

"You can pay rent if you want to." Holly shrugged.

Gail immediately shook the thought out of her head. She loved the townhouse, but it was too expensive to rent in the long run. "It would be too expensive."

"I can give you a discount. A _very_ generous discount. I'm not in need of money anyway."

"Thanks for the offer, but I was thinking of something more permanent. You know, like going house hunting, getting a mortgage from the bank and stuff."

"Very adult-like." Holly nodded.

"Well, the new and improved Gail Peck is looking for a place to settle down. No more shenanigans at Casa Peckstein Diaz."

"I'm glad to hear that." Holly was amazed by Gail's growth within such a short period of time. From the skittish cat she once knew to a matured woman ready to be a mother. Holly couldn't be more proud of Gail.

"You want to get started on your closet?" They were almost done with the bookshelves anyway.

"Okay, but let's take a coffee break first. Oh, and feel free to take any clothes you like. I can buy new ones over there."

Gail shook her head and scrunched up her face. "No way. Too much fleece, Holly. And flannels. It's like a gay pride parade in there."

Both Gail and Holly knew that comment was a lie. Whenever Gail stayed over in the past, she would go into Holly's closet to find some of her clothes to put on. One memory in particular, stuck with Holly.

_It was a double homicide kind of day. What was supposedly a mundane 8 hour day filled with paperwork turned into a nightmare of autopsies and evidence to be processed. Apparently the pathologist who was supposed to work on the case had to leave town for a family emergency. Luckily for Holly, the bodies had only just arrived at his morgue before he received the call. Taking over somebody's work halfway was her ultimate nightmare. Holly was ready to pass out on her soft and comfy bed any second. She dragged her sore leather boots cladded feet up the steps of her townhouse. Heavy footsteps resounded into the quiet of the night. As Holly walked through the front door and into the hallway, she shook off her boots carelessly — showing no interest of where it landed — not without the usual care and consideration of keeping her shoes away properly. She then proceeded to throw her bag over the stool by the breakfast counter, and that was when she saw the boxes of Chinese takeout on the surface of the counter. She had totally forgotten about the dinner she was supposed to have with her girlfriend. Guilt immediately washed over her as she hurriedly dug into her bag in search of her phone. She had left it in silent mode in order to work more efficiently. She scrolled through the list of missed calls and text messages from Gail._

_*Hey, I know you're stuck in the lab and won't be able to come home for dinner anytime soon, but I ordered Chinese anyway so you'll have food to eat when you finish work. I'll just hang around at your place till you're back, okay? I miss you, see you later.*_

_Holly looked up from her phone to look around the silence filled house. The blonde was nowhere in sight. Maybe she had gotten tired of waiting and gone home instead? Then, she heard a soft snore from the living room. She smiled thinking about how sweet and thoughtful her girlfriend was being and stared at the back of the leather couch. Gail must have fallen asleep while waiting for her to return home._

_She tip toed her way to the couch hoping she wouldn't wake Gail. As she rounded the corner of the couch to face the sleeping beauty, the sight of Gail took her breath away. Oblivious to the world around her, a world Gail had been observing with a pair of cynical blue eyes. A world filled with stupidity and desperation. Well, that was what her girlfriend had told her anyway. The blonde looked peaceful, it was a look she often had when she was sleeping. Gail looked so young and so at ease. Holly felt privileged to witness this side of Gail whenever they slept on the same bed. Though that had happened countless of times, Holly will always be struck by Gail's beauty._

_Gail's Holly senses tingled once the brunette got within vicinity. She stirred and felt a warm and familiar hand on her cheek. She reveled in the amazing feeling of Holly's hand caressing her skin before she finally opened those blue eyes. Gail revealed a toothy grin when she saw Holly looking down at her._

_"Hey."_

_"Hey babe. I'm so sorry for making you wait. I turned my phone off to silence and totally spaced about dinner. Have you eaten?"_

_"No worries. I know the double homicide case is kind of a big deal. And yeah, I had a little something but decided to wait for you so we could eat together."_

_Gail pushed up on her elbows to greet Holly with a kiss. When they pulled apart, Holly got a peek of what Gail was wearing as the blanket dropped from her shoulders, before Gail leant back down again snuggling into the blanket._

_Holly smirked. "Looks like you found something not covered in fleece."_

_Gail held up the blanket and looked under it. The blush that took over her face was visible in a matter of seconds. Her brain tried to come up with a quick comeback._

_"Well, it took me a long time. But I found it buried behind the fleece jackets you own in 5 different colors and those bag packs." joked Gail, but then she let out a breath and added, "we haven't seen each other in a week and I just miss you, a lot, and the shirt smells like you. It feels like I'm being wrapped up by you."_

_Holly remained quiet and still. Her heart melted after hearing Gail's words and she had to compose herself so she wouldn't look as if the cutest puppy on earth just did the most adorable thing. Worried by the brunette's silence, Gail quickly sat up, eyes wide. "It's not creepy, is it?"_

_Holly let out a laugh, the blonde's worry and sudden self-consciousness about what she just confessed to was utterly adorable. She sat down next to Gail and faced her with a grin of adoration. "Of course not. I miss you too, Gail. And it looks good on you." The relief on Gail's face made Holly laugh even louder._

_"Idiot. What a way to scare a girl."_

_"I thought police officers doesn't get scared so easily?"_

_Gail huffed out in annoyance and crossed her arms across her chest. "Whatever."_

_Holly pulled her by her arm to close the distance between them. A week of being apart was miserable for the both of them. "Come over here."_

_Gail couldn't say no to Holly's command, so she pulled the blanket away, scooted closer and turned around to straddle Holly. When warm hands found bare skin on Gail's thighs, the brunette smirked mischievously. One week was too long. "Did you lose your pants at work?" Holly looked down and saw that Gail was only wearing her underwear._

_Gail rolled her eyes, her tone dripping in sarcasm. "Yeah, there's a thief at 15 going around stealing people's pants and I decided to leave the station only in my underwear."_

_"Well I hope nobody called the police on you for being mentally unstable."_

_"Oh, shut up." Gail closed the gap between her and Holly to deliver a searing kiss. It was all tongues and teeth, nothing gentle about it. Holly trailed her fingers along the contours of her girlfriend's body, trying to familiarize herself with every inch of Gail's skin, not that Holly needed reminding._

_Gail reluctantly pulled away, lips swollen and pink, trying to catch her breath. "What about dinner? Aren't you hungry?"_

_Holly stared at Gail, eyes wide and out of breath. "It's been a week, Gail. Besides, Chinese is not what I'm craving for right now, anyway."_

_Holly didn't get a respond from Gail. Instead, the blonde leant slightly further and proceeded to slowly unbutton the shirt she was wearing without breaking eye contact with Holly. Warm brown and icy blue eyes held their gaze intensely. Holly swallowed hard when Gail got to the last button and revealed that she wasn't wearing a bra. Holly took a deep shaky breath and moved her hands toward Gail to push the fabric away, to expose those pale and beautiful br..._

"HOLLY STEWART!"

Gail rushed forward with a cloth in her hand. Holly finally broke out of her trance and looked down to where Gail was wiping at. _Damn it!_ Coffee was spilling over the cup and onto the counter and down the kitchen floor. She was lucky the hot liquid hadn't scalded her skin.

"Oh, shit. I'm so sorry."

"Geez, Stewart! Get it together!"

_That was a great night, though._

* * *

They spent the rest of the day packing stuff into boxes before Gail had to head back to her apartment to get her uniform. Contrary to Gail's words, she took a few of Holly's t-shirts, claiming she loved how comfortable the material felt. Holly decided to let that slide. Holly offered to drive Gail home and to work since she had things to take care of in town anyway.

"Stop the car!"

Startled by Gail's alarming voice, Holly stepped on the brakes and pulled the vehicle over by the street. She immediate snapped her head towards Gail, "What's wrong? Are you okay?" checking to see what was wrong with the blonde.

"What do you want? Glazed? Chocolate sprinkles? Or one of those things the hipsters are so obsessed with right now. What's it called...? Oh, cronuts! Do you want a cronut?"

Holly was confused until she looked outside the window to see a bakery. She sighed and looked back at Gail. "Oh my God, you nearly gave me a heart attack, Gail! I thought something happened!"

Gail shrugged and opened the door. "Well, donuts happened. So what do you want, Hols?"

When Holly's heart returned to its normal rhythm, she replied Gail. "Surprise me."

"Okay." Gail reached over to kiss Holly lightly on the lips before getting out of the car. When she returned shortly after, it was with a large donut box in one hand.

"I don't think you can finish all of them."

Gail challenged the brunette. "You want to test that theory out right now?"

"No thanks. Please don't dirty my car."

Gail was only kidding and she knew Holly wouldn't want her to stuff her mouth with a dozen donuts. As she saw the bakery earlier, she thought about getting some as a peace offering for Dov and Chris. She was hardly home recently and she needed something to shut them up. Gail heard about Dov and Chloe's break up and dreaded living at the apartment with a brooding Dov. As luck would have it, Chris came back from his mysterious vacation just in time to relieve Gail of consoling duties. Not that Gail would console Dov, more like supply him with alcohol and let him win at video games. It all worked out for Gail as she was given time to spend with Holly. Gail was incredibly grateful for Chris's existence – at least for the time being – with him keeping Dov company, she could spend her free time with the brunette. Gail made a mental note to buy him a drink at the Penny.

Gail was reaching into the box for a second donut when they arrived at the apartment. After some insistence for Holly to follow her up to the apartment, they were greeted by shouting and sounds of gunshots from the TV on the opposite side of the door. She wasn't going to let Holly out of her sight, unless necessary. Every second counts. The boys must be home as she predicted. Gail unlocked the front door and stepped inside, holding the door for Holly to enter. The brunette followed behind Gail, suddenly shy of being with Gail in front of people they know. They weren't really together _together_ and Holly didn't want people to ask questions or shoot them curious looks. It was partly because she was afraid Gail might get uncomfortable by unwanted attention. But Gail, on the other hand, looked perfectly comfortable.

"Hey losers." Gail greeted Dov and Chris, who were busy punching the buttons of the controllers mercilessly in front of the TV. She placed the box of sweet goods on the coffee table in front of them. Dov paused the game and the two men looked up at her.

"Wow, look who decided to grace us peasants with her warm and inviting presence." Dov joked and Chris laughed at his words.

"No need to be a little bitch, I brought donuts to shut you guys up. So shut up." Gail caught them looking behind her and she suddenly remembered Holly was there too. She pulled her forward by her hand. "Hols, sit down, have a donut and wait for me. I'll just grab some things and we can leave." Holly nodded, but Gail wasn't finished. "Boys, practice some hospitality and make sure the good doctor won't get offended by your existence."

When Gail walked towards her room, Holly remembered she haven't greeted the boys. _Where's my manners?_ She offered a small wave. "Hi Dov, hi Chris. Just carry on with your game and pretend that I'm not here."

"What, are you kidding? You heard her, we have to be nice to you. I mean, we don't have to be forced to be nice to you, we like you." Dov smiled and reach for a donut.

Chris chimed in. "Yeah, Doctor Stewart, we do."

"I like you guys too. Please, call me Holly." Chris smiled and nodded at Holly.

Dov added after his first bite of the donut, "by the way, congrats on your new job, everybody at 15's going to miss you."

"Yeah, congratulations Holly! You should come by the Penny before you leave."

Gail emerged from her room a second later, "Guys, stop hitting on Holly." then she turned to Holly, softening her features. "Let's go."

"That was fast." Holly looked up at Gail and back down between Chris and Dov. "Thanks guys. I'll be at the Penny tomorrow night, so maybe we'll see each other then." Holly waved goodbye, smiled her lopsided smile and stood up to leave the apartment, right behind Gail.

Right before she turned the door knob, Gail spun around abruptly and took a few steps back toward Dov. She took a moment to find the right words and the fitting tone, before speaking. "Hey, Dov, I'm really sorry about you and Chloe. I hope the two of you can work it out."

Dov was a little stunned by the sudden change of Gail's attitude towards him. Gail hated Chloe. She threw snarky and sarcastic comments at him every day. She always mocked their relationship in their faces. But the Gail that stood in front of him, offering him a weak but genuine smile, told Dov that she was indeed feeling sorry. The sincerity evident in her tone from a mile away. So he accepted Gail's words with equal amount of sincerity.

"Thank you, Gail. Have a great shift."

Gail nodded and headed for the door again. Holly felt immensely proud of Gail, not for the first time since they had been spending time together a few days ago.

When they were waiting for the lift to arrive on their floor, Gail looked for Holly's hand and interlaced her fingers with tanned ones. When she moved her eyes up to look at the brunette, the smile Holly was sporting on her face made the butterflies in Gail's stomach flutter like crazy and her head giddy. With a smile so bright and endearing, Gail couldn't help but return a smile too.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sam Smith and MS MR on repeat while writing this chapter, you guys. Mistakes are all mine. I really do hope you enjoy this one.

**Day 6**

"I would've asked you to look alive, but I know that's impossible since you're practically dead inside." a familiar voice teased Gail as she was leaning against the bar, a drink in hand, blue eyes scanning over the crowded bar as if doing surveillance. She didn't have to turn her head to know that it was Steve who sidled up next to her. When she and Holly walked into the Penny, Gail immediately regretted bringing Holly there and wished she could've grab Holly by her arm and tug her back out onto the streets and back to her place. Where they could've celebrated on behalf of 15 division, in bed, multiple times and throughout the night. She was _not_ happy with everyone hogging over her Holly. Well, hers for a limited period of time before she would not be anymore. So much smiles and so much joy. Ugh. Gail only lasted 10 minutes standing by Holly, smiling and looking happy for the brunette before the alcohol kicked in and that was when she retreated to the bar for more alcohol and sulking, hoping no one would miss her. It was Holly's night after all.

Gail downed the rest of her whiskey before speaking to Steve, eyes still trained on Holly. "Go away."

"Can't a big brother come and check on his beloved sister, who seems to be sulking into her, what, third drink?" Steve attempted to tickle the back of Gail's ear like how he used to since they were young.

Gail swatted his hand away before shooting a death glare at her brother. "You and I both know exactly why you're standing here, at the opposite end of the room. Because Traci's here and you don't want things to get awkward. So move your sorry ass to the other end of the bar and leave me alone." Gail waved the bartender over for another round. "Oh and this is my fifth drink."

"Well, that's only a half-truth. I do want to check on you. Maybe you should slow down a little bit. Aren't you supposed to be hanging out with Holly and your friends and not here looking like someone stole your favorite soft toy?" The scowl on Gail's face told Steve that someone did, in fact, stole from her. A soft toy shaped in the form of a tan brunette with glasses. It seemed like the whole of 15 division decided to take the night off and showed up to buy Holly a drink. Steve laughed at the realization.

"Ah, I see. You're upset because you have to share Holly."

"I don't have to share anything. Holly's not mine to share." Gail's reply came almost instantaneously.

"As long as she's still here and you two are spending time together, yes, she's yours to share." Gail stared at Steve's words which made him try to come up with something to stop his sister from staring at him like that, "And it also means that it's your decision whether or not you want to share." Steve nodded trying to agree with his own comeback.

But Gail just ignored him and resumed her mission of casting longing looks over at Holly, who was laughing heartily at Andy's joke. Steve followed where her eyes were looking at and returned his attention back to his sister. He kept looking at Gail, who was looking at Holly with an unusual emotional depth in her eyes. A look he had never seen on Gail before. A look of adoration, a deep sense of love. Love for Holly. _Love_ , Steve thought to himself. Love was never a word he associated with Gail. Gail fell in love with Holly and he could see that it was eating at her, because of the situation she was in.

"You love her, don't you?" Steve paid close attention, careful not to miss Gail's reaction, as small as if could be he never missed it, not once.

Gail immediately froze and looked at her glass of whiskey. She thought about how she should react to Steve's sudden revelation. There were a few ways it could go down. She could disagree with Steve, accuse him of making a mistake. But she knew Steve had the ability to see through her bullshit. She could tell Steve that he was right and they proceed to have a heart to heart right there at the bar, a few feet away from the object of her affection. That probably wouldn't happen though. So Gail decided to remain quiet. Silence means consent and all. She had no desire of spilling her feelings for Holly to him anyway.

Steve continued to stare at his sister. Poor Gail looked so torn up and he couldn't do anything about it. When she finally found someone she loved, to give her heart to, shit had gone sideways. Maybe the Pecks are destined to live a miserable life. And he knew Gail would never tell Holly how she truly felt, not because she was afraid the brunette doesn't feel the same way but because she would be leaving and admitting her feelings would cause the situation they found themselves in to be even shittier. Steve sighed.

He tried to venture a wary hand onto Gail's shoulder hoping she wouldn't swat it away this time, "Love's never easy." punctuating his words with a comforting squeeze.

Gail wanted to shove his hand away, to use vicious words and a harsh tone to make his brother go away. She wanted to scoff at Steve's words. As if he knew anything about love. But there was no need to put up a front with him, no need to argue and disagree. Gail was tired, tired of fighting against the current, to not let it consume her wholly. And Steve understood that. He knew about the ongoing battle in her head. So he just stood there next to his baby sister, offering her his support the best way the Peck siblings knew how. In silent. Gail was grateful for that. It was far better than using words because they both sucked at that.

Ever since they were kids, when something bad happened to either of them, no words were needed to provide comfort and consolation. The absence of their parents left a dent in their childhood. When they were old enough to accept the fact that Elaine and Bill Peck would hardly be there for them — as loving and doting parents — unless one of them made mistakes and needed scolding, the disappointment they felt became lesser. Over time, they just felt numb and used to Elaine constantly putting her children down and Bill's ignorance of what was happening in his own home. The support they craved was simply the presence of each other.

Gail tried to remain positive, but the alcohol in her system made it harder and harder for her to smile and be happy for Holly. Alcohol brought out the cynicism in Gail. She knew she had to be mature about all of this and although she had been very understanding about Holly's impending departure, old Gail was trying to make her way up to the surface. Because old Gail wanted to voice out her thoughts. Old Gail wanted to lash out at Holly for leaving. Old Gail wanted to scream out her disapproval. She quickly shook her head, the alcohol was getting to her and she knew she should probably stop drinking before things get ugly. So Gail downed her fifth drink, concluding that was her last and made her way back towards the gang, leaving Steve to his own thoughts. She put on her game face and stood beside Holly.

Holly looked up at the blonde who seemed like she suddenly appeared out of thin air. Her cheeks had a slight blush to them, brown eyes glossy but still alert. The alcohol was getting to Holly too. "Hey, I missed you... Where did you go?" At the sight of a tipsy Holly, Gail couldn't help the smile that was forming on her face. Gail felt better already. "I was talking to Steve at the bar," Gail looked around to see that there were no chairs available so she lowered herself onto Holly's lap. Holly had a goofy grin on when she wrapped her arms around the blonde. Gail whispered into Holly's ear, "You're drunk." brushing strands of hair away to get a better look of the brunette's face.

"Just a little bit. You would be too, if the whole 15 division was buying you drinks." Holly gently rested her forehead against Gail's and lowered her voice in the crowded bar so their friends couldn't hear what she was about to say. "I want you. Come home with me tonight."

Gail tried to hide her already blushing face against Holly's neck. "You're drunk, I don't want to take advantage of you."

"How chivalrous of you, Officer Peck. And we know how amazing sex can be when we're both slightly inebriated."

"You're way more than slightly, Hols. You're legitimately drunk." Gail looked up and smiled at Holly.

"Just a teensy bit." Holly's thumb met her index finger to emphasize her point.

"More than a teensy bit." Gail narrowed her eyes and argued back.

Holly rolled her eyes, speaking at a louder volume this time in an attempt to look annoyed but failing miserably. Gail adored this woman like crazy. "Okay, fine, more than a teensy bit. But I'm still perfectly capable of making you co—"

Before Holly could finish her words, Gail immediately shut her up with a kiss and whispered to the brunette, hoping her friends didn't have a clue what she thought Holly was about to say. "Fine, fine! But later, okay? And I know you're not drunk enough to say these things out loud in public in front of these people I work with every day."

Holly giggled, "see, told you I'm not _that_ drunk. And what did you think I was going to say? Get your head out of the gutter, Peck." satisfied with her win.

"You know what, you win. I'm too lazy to carry this on with you." Gail pulled Holly in by her neck to deliver a sweet kiss.

No one dared to comment on Gail's display of affection but tried to subtly observe them, afraid that Gail might jump over the table and take turns to strangle every one of them. Besides, the pair looked incredibly cute together. A few of their faces changed after a realization dawned on them. It took Traci and Oliver a few seconds before the rest caught on. They exchanged knowing looks with each other, the lovebirds oblivious to the people around them, their surroundings fading away as they were looking deeply into each other's eyes. Their friends thought Gail and Holly were going through one of those tragic love story in the movies. When conversations resumed around the table, the pair broke out of their own bubble and joined in as Traci talked about the new forensic pathologist.

"That guy is no fun, Holly. Everybody will you miss dearly." The gang voiced their agreements and held their drinks up for a toast.

"I'll miss all of you, too."

* * *

The death grip Gail had on the sheets loosen for the third time that night. After the officers of 15 bid their farewells to their favorite doctor, Steve sent Gail and Holly back to the brunette's house. Once the front door closed behind them, neither wasted anymore time stripping the other off of her clothes. It was a frenzy of lips and hands roaming over the other's body. They barely made it to the bedroom half naked, stumbling over packed and empty boxes as Gail paid no attention towards where they were heading, trusting Holly to steer them in the right way to the bedroom. It took forever to reach the door of Holly's bedroom, lips barely leaving each other's for more than a few seconds. But Gail considered it a success since no one tripped and fell.

"Wow," Gail gasped for air as Holly slowly made her way back up the blonde's body and finally making her last stop at those pink and desirable lips she loved so much. "That was fucking amazing."

"See, told you. Perfectly capable. Three times in a row, no less."

"Okay, Holly. You've made your point. Happy now?" Gail said with her eyes closed but her features are showed that the blonde felt completely sated.

"Very."

There was silence except for the sounds of breathing from the two. Alcohol induced sex were always something they both enjoyed. Holly would take up the more dominating role and Gail absolutely had no complains when it happened. Gail always found it a turn off whenever the men she slept with did it to her. It was too rough and sometimes, even a little disrespectful. But dominating Holly was a hot Holly. Even when being demanding, she would try to be as gentle as possible and frequently asked if Gail felt okay. It was definitely a turn on for the blonde. And most of the time during post coital cuddles, both women stripped bare from any clothing and feeling incredibly spent in the best possible way, emotions run high leaving them raw and vulnerable in front of each other. And it was during these moments that Holly realized just how much Gail trusted her. Completely and utterly trusted Holly with her body, emotions and her soul. During these moments Holly couldn't help but fall even more in love with the blonde than she thought was possible. It was like suffering from amnesia, only to be reminded how much she loved Gail. Holly's love for Gail knew no bounds. She wanted to bottle up this moment or seal it into her brain and never leave this bed, this house, especially with the blonde in it. It wasn't like Holly didn't want to tell Gail she loved her. But like Gail, she was afraid it might ruin what was left of their time together. Holly sighed deeply.

"I'm going to miss this." Holly laid her head on Gail's chest, fingers on one hand running circles on her waist.

It was like something had awaken within Gail, breaking her from the bliss she was currently in. And it was ugly. The alcohol was still buzzing and her brain decided to use it against her, to make use of the emotions and vulnerability she was feeling. One moment she was contented and grateful and the next, she was being stripped away from the happiness she was feeling. It took over her before she had the time to try to keep it all down.

"Then don't leave."

Holly was shocked by the sudden 180 in Gail's mood. She visibly recoiled from the tone of Gail's voice. A tone Gail used at work, on suspects and criminals. She stilled her movements on her fingers and retreated back to her side of the bed. Holly was one to expect the worse. It was probably because of her job at the morgue. To be honest, witnessing the positive changes in Gail for the past few days was absolutely amazing. But Holly couldn't shake the feeling as if all the progress Gail made would take a U-turn and she would undoubtedly be on the receiving end of it.

"Gail... We've been through this..."

Gail sat up straight, words coming out of her mouth before she could stop it. Words that formed thoughts that she never knew had been subconsciously on her mind until tonight, after the alcohol kicked in. "But we didn't _really_ , did we? Because you just decided to take up a job in San Francisco, thinking that I would go _with_ you. Without even the slightest intention of asking me first, or telling me about the new offer? Then you come into 15 with some bullshit excuse just to make out with me, acting like you didn't just make a decision to move to another fucking country for God knows how long? You can't just march your way back into my life and leave, _again_! You're so incredibly smart, Holly, but sometimes you just drive me so damn crazy."

Holly seemed to move further away from Gail with every word that came out of her mouth. Gail took a deep breath before continuing. "So _no,_ we _haven't_ been through this. And the impetuous brat that never left wants to come out and play."

Holly held her tongue and let Gail finish. They both had a part in this and she wasn't going to let Gail blame everything on her. "And what if I hadn't accepted the job, or what if it never even happened, how do you think I would feel about you suddenly wanting to become a mother to an 8 year old kid? And you expected me to raise her with you? Be a big happy family? You made your own decisions too."

The rage in Gail was fueled by what Holly had just said. She _cannot_ believe Holly right now. "You _do not_ get to use Sophie against me. I thought we were done and my mind was made up to be a single parent. You were the one who came back dropping a bomb in my face about leaving town. For fuck's sake you thought I would willingly go with you when we were practically broken up! For some reason I didn't receive the memo that we were still in a relationship since we weren't even talking to each other and you said you were seeing someone else!"

Gail's sudden movement broke Holly out of her reverie. She panicked when she realized Gail was getting dressed, leaving her and this room. Gail was not done. After she got dressed, she stood up and started to pace in front of the bed. This time, Gail sounded defeated. The fight in her gone. "I don't know what to do, Holly. I'm _so_ hopelessly in love with you but you just had to rip my heart out. You might not be aware of it, but you did. And I just... I'm tired. Tired of acting like I'm perfectly fine with you leaving and maybe never ever come back. At least not for the probability of 5 years."

Holly was speechless. She just sat on the bed and stared at Gail. Gail was right, she used Sophie against her and it was unfair of Holly to do so. And Gail was right about everything else. But most importantly, Gail told her she was in love with her and the sight of Gail looking so heartbroken while saying those words she had yearn to hear absolutely shattered her. _What happened to telling each other stuff?_ How did a perfectly amazing night of connecting with each other physically and emotionally took such a dramatic turn for the worse?

When Holly finally managed to find the ability to form coherent words, she asked Gail, "Where are you going? It's late." when there was no response from the blonde, Holly pleaded, "Please don't go." her voice broke and tears were falling down her face.

Hearing a sob come out of Holly, Gail wanted to turn around, go back into bed and wrap her arms around the brunette. But she kept she resolve strong, and before walking out of the room, she turned to face Holly with all the strength left in her for a final blow. "Well, you're the one leaving the country, so..." She let it hang in the air and with a shrug, turned back towards the door and headed down the stairs.

Holly leapt out of bed, picked up the clothes on the bedroom floor and in the hallway and quickly got dressed in an attempt to go after Gail. She wasn't going to let Gail walk away again, not like that night at the Penny. It was late and cold and unsafe out on the streets. The front door slammed close when Holly began to fly down the stairs. She grabbed the hoodie lying on the couch on her way out the door, hoping it would be enough to keep her warm. But she was so wrong, because the second she opened the door, the biting cold wind hits her mercilessly. If it wasn't for Gail, Holly would've immediately retreated back inside the house. Shivering slightly, she marched on towards the blonde who was standing by the pavements holding her phone against her ear.

Tears immediately fell and roll down her cheeks once her back was facing Holly. She quickly got out of the house, taking her phone out of her jeans pocket to look for somebody to call to pick her up, despite how late it was. Gail wasn't going to call and get into a cab all by herself so late at night because of the Perik incident. Her trembling fingers found Steve's contact when she heard the front door opened. She started to walk away from the house.

When Holly saw that Gail was beginning to walk away, she ran up to her and grabbed her upper arm. "Gail! Stop, please."

The blonde yanked her arm and started to walk even faster. She didn't trust herself to be quiet, afraid that the neighbors would call the Police. She needed no further embarrassment to add to her meltdown. Imagine officers from 15 found out that a Peck was the cause of a disturbance? That shit would be all over the precinct by tomorrow morning. So she just kept quiet and moved her feet faster while dialing Steve's number for a second time.

But Holly was much faster than Gail. She ran in front of Gail, both arms out at her sides to block the blonde from walking any further. "Gail, please, just come back inside. It's late and it's freezing. I can drive you home if you want."

"I can take care of myself."

"I know you can, of course you can, but just, _please_ come back inside." Holly was desperate. She wasn't above begging at this point. Gail refused to turn and look at the brunette because her walls are crumbling. She just wanted to curl up in her bed.

When there was no response from Gail, Holly tried again, desperation evident in her tone once again. " _Please_ , baby. Come home with me."

At Holly's term of endearment, Gail broke. The dam burst open and her walls were completely destroyed, leaving her vulnerable and weak. Her legs felt like jelly and she couldn't stand up on her own anymore. She felt them giving way, but warm, comforting arms held her up and against the brunette's body. Holly was there to catch her. Gail wasn't sure when was the last time she had cried like her guts were spilled all over the pavement. Gut-wrenching sobs were muffled by Holly's neck as she rubbed soothing circles on Gail's back, holding her as close to her own body as possible.

"I'm sorry." The words were played like a broken record into Gail's ear. Every sob from Gail was like a stab in her heart. Holly might not be bawling her eyes out at that moment, but the steady stream of tears from both her eyes felt like hot lava against her cheeks.

After Gail's sobs were reduced to soft sniffles, Holly led the two of them back to the house without protest from the blonde. She deposited Gail on the couch and went to fill two glasses of water to bring over to the living room. Gail accepted the glass in silence and took a few gulps before putting it down on the coffee table. Holly wasn't sure what to do. For the first time since they met, she wasn't sure how to approach Gail. Even during the meltdown that resulted in losing most of Gail's hair, Holly knew what to say or what to do to the blonde. She was afraid any sudden movements or taking a step nearer towards Gail would send her flying out of the door again. The skittish cat had indeed made its return. Holly was so deep in her thoughts that she almost missed it when Gail finally spoke.

"I'm sorry for yelling and causing a scene earlier." Gail whispered in a cracked voice from all the crying.

"Don't be sorry. It wasn't your fault." _None of this is your fault._ "Do you want me to drive you home?" Holly added, trying to break the silence. Holly was already moving to go grab her keys when she saw the blonde shake her head. Holly was surprised, but glad that Gail wasn't planning to go anywhere. She walked closer to the couch.

To be honest, Gail never wanted to leave, not even after that huge fight that came out of nowhere. Actually, it came from her. She started it. But she blamed the emotions that were running high at that moment and the alcohol. She didn't want to go home and sleep on her cold and empty bed, she didn't want to wake up to the sounds of Dov and Chris talking loudly in the kitchen while getting ready for their shift. She knew they had to talk though. It was the miscommunication that started a few months ago that led to her outburst. But not tonight. She was tired and she couldn't talk about her feelings anymore for the night. It was as if Holly had read her mind.

"Okay, why don't we go to bed and we can talk about this tomorrow."

Gail nodded and moved to get up from the couch. Halfway up the stairs, she sensed that Holly wasn't following behind her, so she turned back to face the living room. "You coming?"

Holly wanted to sleep in the guestroom, to give Gail some space. But she also needed to know that Gail was there with her. To feel her presence. After spending the past few days in bed together, she wasn't sure how she'll be able to sleep by herself in San Francisco. She nodded and took the glasses into the kitchen. "In a minute."

Tomorrow, it would be Holly's turn to talk. To let Gail know how she truly felt about the blonde. She might've wanted to keep it to herself all the way to San Francisco, but after Gail's heart wrenching admission that she loved Holly, Holly owed it to Gail to be honest about her feelings too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stay with me guys!


	7. Chapter 7

**Day 7**

The moment streaks of sunlight crept past the curtains and into her bedroom, Holly gently extracted herself from the bed, careful not to wake the sleeping blonde on the other side of it. She put on her glasses and started her day with a long and hot shower first. She was glad there wasn't any after effects from the alcohol she consumed the previous night. But Holly was pretty sure the events from the night before and the long, painful and sleepless hours after managed to sober her up. She hoped there wouldn't be a killer hangover waiting for Gail once she wakes up. She closed her eyes and let the sprays of hot water travel down her entire body. Images of Gail breaking down in her arms appeared behind her eyelids, just like it did for the past several hours whenever Holly tried to get some sleep. While Gail had been deep in slumber the moment her head hits the pillow — probably emotionally drained and the alcohol and sex before didn't help either — Holly had been going over and over their heated exchange and the heartbreaking cries from Gail outside her house all night. She went over every word that was said, every gesture and every expression that came from Gail. At that moment Holly wasn't sure if she was grateful for the ability to remember and analyze everything that happened last night like how she examines and dissects evidence at the lab. But her mind just won't shut down for the night.

The way Gail confessed her love for the brunette was less than ideal. It wasn't as if Holly expected it to be like a fairytale, exchanging I love you's and live happily ever after. But looking at Gail say that she was hopelessly in love with her in a body language and tone that screamed heartache and despair, it killed Holly that Gail associated her love for Holly with such depressing feelings and emotions. Because when Holly thought about Gail, there were only beautiful things that came to mind. But Holly doesn't blame Gail for feeling like that. She blamed herself, she put those thoughts and feelings there, even if it wasn't on purpose.

Holly got out of the shower and decided to get a head start of the day by making coffee, having some fruits and yoghurt for breakfast and then checking her email on her laptop. She had enough time to think about what she wanted, _needed,_ to say to Gail. All she had to do was to wait for the blonde to wake up and have some coffee and breakfast first.

Gail was woken up by the faint sound of vibrations from a phone. She turned to her side to look at the brunette but found the other side of the bed to be empty. Another series of vibration brought her back to the task at hand, to shut that thing off. When she realized it came from her phone, she bent down and stretched her hand to reach for her phone in her jeans pocket. It was Steve calling. Then she remembered the night before, how she had called him multiple times for a ride home. She picked up and told Steve that she was okay and nothing happened and she was at Holly's. After she hung up, Gail looked at the time on her phone and placed it on the nightstand. It was 10am and Holly was already awake. Gail was glad she was given some time after she woke up to think about what happened, to put her messy thoughts in place. _What an embarrassment,_ Gail recalled her unexpected meltdown a few hours prior that morning. Then she panicked. _Did I just told Holly I'm hopelessly in love with her? Oh God._ Suddenly she was not looking forward to face Holly. Maybe she could just jump out of the window? _Damn it._ After another 20 minutes of silence and space to brace herself for what was waiting for her downstairs, she got out of bed and went to the bathroom to freshen up. Gail was glad she only had a slight headache from the drinking and probably from being an emotional mess. When she was ready to get the day going, she headed downstairs and the smell of coffee filled up her nose and woke her senses. Then she saw Holly sitting at the breakfast counter with a book in one hand and a mug of coffee in the other and her heart started to beat much faster. Gail tried to keep calm and walked towards Holly who was unaware of the sudden presence of the blonde. Gail cleared her throat and Holly's head immediately snapped up to look at her.

"Oh, hey, good morning. I made coffee and already have the pancake batter ready for you."

Gail was a little taken aback by how natural it all seemed, like nothing happened between them the night before. Holly's tone was warm and inviting. "Hey. Yeah, pancakes sound great. Thanks." She then stood up to make herself a cup of coffee. She needed it.

Once Holly started pouring the batter onto the pan, she spoke with her back facing Gail. "How did you sleep? Are you suffering from a hangover?"

"It was okay. No hangover, thank God." Gail brought the steaming cup of coffee to her lips for a tentative sip before continuing. "What about you?"

Holly hesitated, wasn't sure if she should tell Gail she didn't sleep well at all, but decided not to worry Gail. "Fine. I woke up early though."

There was silence as Gail continued to sip on her coffee while Holly flipped pancakes. When she was done, she placed the plate and the syrup in front of Gail and returned to her position from earlier to resume her reading.

"Thanks. You're not eating?"

"I already ate, I had some fruits and yoghurt earlier because I know how much you hated them."

Gail scrunched up her face in disgust. "Who chooses fruits over pancakes?"

Holly just offered Gail an amused smile while shaking her head and continued where she left off from earlier.

While Gail attacked the pancakes, she couldn't help but cast quick glances over at Holly from time to time. She watched the brunette, who was focused on the book in her hand. How her lips moved as she read every word and how her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. Holly was so into her book that she wasn't aware of Gail's eyes on her for a good 5 minutes after she was done with her breakfast. Every time Holly had a book in her hand, Gail knew she had to fight for the attention she wanted from the brunette. It was ridiculous how jealous she could feel of Holly's books. But Gail loved that about Holly. Gail loved everything that came with Holly and she wouldn't change anything about her.

"So are you going to keep reading until your eyes pop out of its sockets or are we going to talk?" No point wasting any more time, might as well get the show on the road. Time was not on their side.

Holly looked up from her book and stared at Gail, confusion obvious on her face, but only for a moment before she realized what Gail was saying. "Right, okay." She puts her book down and took Gail's plate to the sink. She would do the dishes later.

When she turned around, Gail was already seated on the couch, her cup of coffee held by both of her hands. Holly got a refill for herself before joining Gail. This was going to be a long talk. Holly took a seat next to Gail, putting some distance between them and tried not to look as nervous as Gail. She knew this time she was going to be the one to do most of the talking.

"I have things to tell you, to talk about. So, please listen, okay?"

Gail nodded. Holly took a deep breath before launching into a speech. "While I was lying in bed last night, I had time to reflect. I went all the way back to the early beginnings of our relationship. To find out what went wrong, the root of the problem. To that night at the Penny. To me accepting the job and the reckless make out session I initiated about a week ago. It all pointed to one big factor, the root of the problem - lack of communication. When we first became a _thing_ , I told you that trust, honesty and openness were the most important things that should always be present in our relationship. Understanding comes after. I promised to always keep the line of communication open, always willing to listen to you, and I wished for you to speak freely of your feelings no matter good or bad."

Holly paused and took another deep breath before continuing, brown eyes never leaving blue ones. "And for the first few weeks, everything was fine. We were having fun, going through our honeymoon phase. Then I felt like we were stuck in this limbo, you know? Like none of us wanted to tell each other how we really feel. Then as time passes by and every second that I wasn't telling about my true feelings, it was killing me. Because I was falling for you, hard. And every time my heart swells for the love I feel for you, I couldn't tell you then."

"So I wasn't doing my part, not really. I brought up all these conditions and I made promises but I kept my feelings hidden from you, afraid that you would be freaked out at how fast our relationship might be progressing. So I hid things. I pretended I was fine with this casual yet very serious thing going on between us. Then Lisa happened, and I realized how serious you were about us but it was too late."

Suddenly, Holly stood up and started pacing, as if sitting still was too difficult to do. She took a minute to think about what she wanted to say next. When she finally turned around to look at Gail, the blonde's fingers were fiddling with the bottom of Holly's t-shirt the brunette gave her the night before to wear to sleep. When Gail finally looked up, Holly continued with her speech.

"You know, everybody puts me on this high pedestal, they watch my every move, they say I can do no wrong and I'm smart and I can achieve anything. I'm smart, I know that. I'm really smart, actually. But once I fucked up, everyone makes a huge deal out of it, they give me so much crap for it and I know I probably deserve it, but they make me feel a hundred times worse than I already feel. People tend to forget one thing. I'm not perfect. Nobody's perfect. I may graduate top of my class, but I have flaws. Huge flaws. I make mistakes like everyone else. Especially relationships wise. I can study and graduate with PhDs and masters and degrees but I will never comprehend love. _Love_ I feel for _you._ So I need you to know that from the bottom of my heart, I'm really sorry for how I've treated things and for the decisions I've made. Most importantly, for what I said last night. I shouldn't have used Sophie against you and I deeply regretted it."

When the silence went on for almost a minute, Gail took it as a cue that Holly was done, so she carried on the conversation. She smiled at the first thing she thought of saying. "Love's never easy." She silently thanked Steve for those words from the previous night. "I was an emotional train wreck and the alcohol didn't help either. You're not the only one sorry for what you said." Gail paused for a second. "Wait, you love me?" She had a disbelieving expression on her face.

Holly walked the few steps needed to get closer to Gail. She knelt down and took Gail's hands in her own. Tears pooled in dark brown eyes. "I do. I love you. So much that it hurts. And the thought of leaving you kills me every time." The words were spoken in such sincerity and affection, it made Gail's breath hitch and a lump to form in her throat.

"I love you too." Crystal blue eyes shined with unshed tears too. Why are they only doing this now? _Because we're idiots and we have the worse timing, that's why._ So much could've been prevented if they just spoke to each other. _What dumbasses._ "And I want you to know that, even if none of this happened, I would still want you take the job. I would probably be unhappy about it, like now, but I would still want you to take it."

"Would you have agreed to come with me?"

Gail wasn't sure how to answer Holly. "I… No. I belong here, I need to be here so I could adopt Sophie and raise her in a familiar environment where everybody I know is here. My family's here."

"I understand." The disappointment heavy in Holly's tone. She offered Gail a smile hoping it would be enough to tell Gail she really understood. She stood up to take a seat on the couch, close to Gail. "I really screwed up this time, huh?"

"No, you didn't. I'm not that innocent too. We both have fault in this. We were broken up and we didn't know what the possibility of getting back together was. It was the right thing to do, to accept the job."

"I really wanted you to come with me."

"I know."

"And Gail, I'm so proud of who you've become. In such a short period of time you've grown so much. I've always loved you for who you are, but during these past few days what I've witnessed caused me to fall even more in love with you, if that's even possible. You continue to astound me. Perhaps our break up did you good."

Gail squeezed Holly's hands that was still holding hers and shook her head. "No, it didn't. I was miserable. It did give me time to do some thinking, but I missed you terribly. Every day. It is you who changed me, Holly. And I'm afraid of what will happen once you leave."

Holly squeezed back as tight as Gail did, trying to reassure the blonde. "Nothing will happen, Gail. You'll continue to be your amazing self and you'll be an incredible mother to Sophie. I'm just a phone call or email away. We'll always be in touch, I promise."

The tears in Gail's eyes finally rolled down her cheeks. After last night, she didn't think there were any more tears left. Holly immediately wiped them away and caressed her face, "We'll figure it out, babe." leaning her forehead against Gail's.

Gail nodded and her eyes fluttered close to revel the soothing feeling of Holly's touch.

* * *

Gail walked into the precinct heading for the locker room to get ready for her shift, feeling pretty much over it even when work haven't even started yet. _What a bloody long day._ Gail sighed. It was one of those days where she hoped she gets assigned for desk duty. She needed it. She wasn't in the right mind to be out on the streets. She needed time to process their talk from earlier and the current predicament they've found themselves in. Are they really going to do the whole long distance thing for two years? They haven't really covered that much because Gail had to go in for her shift and she was done talking for the day. She didn't want to arrive at 15 looking like an emotional mess. They promised to talk more at a later time.

It seemed like luck was on her side, after all. She got desk duty for the day to catch up on some paperwork and during parade, Oliver announced that detective rotation were coming up and he expected the application forms on his desk to be filled seriously and wholeheartedly. Officers at 15 already knew the time was near, they were just waiting for a formal announcement from their staff sergeant. And Gail was ready to put her name up for consideration. After parade was over and before she started her shift at the desk, Gail decided to pay Oliver a visit at his office. He spotted Gail making her way towards his office and dropped his pen on the pile of paperwork in front of him to greet his officer.

"Peck, to what do I owe this pleasure?" Oliver motioned for Gail to take a seat.

"I just wanted you to know that I'll be applying for the detection rotation. Just a heads up for when you see my application on your desk."

Oliver was surprised. It wasn't that he thought she couldn't do it, she's a Peck after all, but because Gail had never talked about her interest in being a detective. He decided to bring it up. "Well isn't this is welcome surprise. But what brought this on? Is it your mother?"

Gail shrugged. "I just thought maybe it's time for me to move on."

Oliver wasn't having any of it. There was more to that reason and he wanted to know. "You and I both know that's not the only reason. You know you can trust me right?"

Gail thought about it for a second. If she told Oliver about adopting Sophie, he would be the second person to know about it. Even Steve had no idea. But Oliver was right, she could trust him and she trusted him with her life. "I'm adopting Sophie and I need a more stable job that requires me to be in less dangerous situations and a better salary."

Oliver reclined back in his chair and took the information in. He certainly wasn't expecting that to be the reason. "Sophie, from the Jameson case?"

Gail just nodded.

"Are you… Are you sure about this? Because I have a kid and it is not easy."

"I know it's not easy, Oliver. I know it's not like adopting a pet, she's a human being and she lost her mother and she's got no one else and I don't know why I'm so drawn to her. I have to do this."

Oliver knew Gail would've thought long and hard about this before finally setting her mind on it. Gail wasn't one to make impulsive decisions. And he understood why now and why this child. Because it got to her and she doesn't want lose Sophie to the system. "I get it, Gail. I really do. If this is what you want, what you have to do, I'll support you. No matter what, kiddo."

Gail knew Oliver would understand and she was right to trust him with this. "Thanks, I appreciate it." She smiled sincerely at him.

"Alright. I expect an ironclad application from you soon and get back out there and do your job."

Before Gail stepped out of the office, Oliver stopped her and added, "Hey, I know this thing with Holly sucks and you can hide it from the rest, but I know you're really sad about her leaving. So why don't you take Holly to my cabin for a few days, if the both of you are feeling up for it? You have a few vacation days to spare, just let me know and I'll hand you the key."

"Thank you for your offer, Oliver. I'll ask Holly and let you know."

Oliver nodded. "You do that."

Gail was shocked by such a generous offer from Oliver. She knew Oliver loved all the rookies like his own, but the two of them had a special bond that Oliver and the other rookies never shared. Gail really appreciated everything Oliver was trying to do for her. And a few days away from the city, just the two of them with no distractions sounded kind of amazing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want you guys to know that this chapter was the most difficult one I've ever written. A lot of backspacing and editing. I needed to stop reading it over and over, so I decided to just post it. It was easier to write Gail's parts because I've loved the character since the pilot and we've seen more of her than Holly. I want to do Golly justice and I really hope I did. I would love for you guys to tell me if you liked their talk. Constructive feedback will help me a lot, thanks!


	8. Chapter 8

**Day 8**

"I think I saw pigs flying right outside the window." Steve pointed his finger towards the sky outside the diner while taking a seat in front of Gail.

"Steve, don't make me regret this and walk out of here right now."

Gail had asked her brother out for breakfast at the diner near 15 before they both had to go in for work. Steve initially rejected Gail saying he wanted to catch some extra sleep, but after hearing Gail said she would be buying, he immediately agreed. Steve knew Gail definitely wanted something because Gail Peck never buys anyone anything unless she needed something from you. And unless you're Holly.

After the Peck siblings had their orders taken and a steaming cup of coffee each, Steve decided to jump right on it. "Alright, what is it?"

The thing about Gail and Steve was they don't like to beat around the bush. Being blunt and straight to the point was how things worked at the Peck household. If there was something on your mind, you say it loud and clearly. Elaine Peck disliked mumbling and stammering.

"I'm applying for the detective rotation."

Steve was pleased by the news. "What happened to living up to the stereotype of cops eating donuts and drinking coffee all day?" For the past 2 years, Steve had been persuading Gail to move up in the ranks but failing miserably. He never really understood why his sister wanted to stay as a uniformed cop, but if Gail was happy, he would be okay with it.

"Why are you questioning my decision? You should be over the moon because I'm finally fulfilling your lifelong dream of being able to fight crime side by side with the most wonderful person you've ever met."

"I've never said that."

Gail smirked. "You didn't have to. The way you sulk and look sad every time I turn your idea down made it rather obvious."

"Whatever." It was true though. It would be cool to work with Gail closely, let the Peck siblings clean up the streets and rule the city like some cartoon or sitcom. Steve always thought Gail was wasting her true potential as a uniform. He thought it was to spite their mother. He was sure she would be great at being a detective. "So, any preference? Homicide, narcotics, or guns and gangs like your big brother?"

Gail raised both of her hands to stop Steve from getting ahead of himself. "Whoa, slow down. I haven't even filled out the application form yet. Not to mention I might not even get chosen."

"Gail, we both know if you really wanted something, you'll make damn sure you'd get it." Steve took a sip of his coffee. "By legit means, of course." He knew how much the Peck name weighed down on Gail, how much crap she had to endure for the past few years by her co-workers because of that name. Even though Gail had proven herself to be a great cop and gained respect from her fellow officers, sometimes it was still an awkward thing to face when career opportunities like this arises.

Gail took a deep breath for the next bomb she was about to drop on Steve. She contemplated when would be the right time to tell him about Sophie, but figured there wasn't a right timing for it. She just had to say it. "And I'm adopting Sophie. The kid from the Jameson case we both worked on months ago."

Steve looked Gail straight in the eye, blue eyes widening at her statement. The day was filled with surprises and it was only morning. Gail? Being a mother? Raising a kid? Was she joking with him?

"No you're not."

"Yes I am."

"You've got to be fucking kidding me."

Gail had expected such a reaction from her brother. Holly and Oliver may have supported her decision right off the bat but she knew Steve needed time to process this piece of news. "Nope. The adoption process just started recently."

"How are you going to be someone's mother? The last time I checked you live in an apartment with two guys you work with and your diet consists of alcohol and junk food."

"I've been looking at houses and making big changes in my life. I know it won't be easy, but I know I can do it. I've never been so sure of anything in my life, Steve. I love that kid and I don't want to lose her."

Steve was shocked. Gail had been spending time with an orphaned child and he was clueless about it. "You've been spending time with her after the case?" Gail nodded.

Steve brought a hand to his forehead and rubbed at his temples. "Geez, Gail." Then it all seemed to click. "And you're applying for the detective job because it's safer than being out on the streets all the time?"

_Well, not all the time._ Gail simply nodded.

"I still… I still can't believe it. My baby sister wants to be a mother."

"I'm _ready_ to be a mother."

Steve just hummed his response. After a moment of silence, their food arrived. Steve seemed to have lost his appetite. "So your decision to become a detective is not really your decision. It's to improve your chances for the adoption."

If Steve puts it that way, it was true. But still Gail's decision either way. "I know I'll be a great detective. An amazing one, even. I just never wanted it until I felt like it was the right time to make the change. I never had the drive to become one, until now. I know I'm ready now because I'm ready to be Sophie's mom, if it makes sense to you? Besides, it'll make you, mom and dad happy. For once, Gail's making a decision that'll benefit the Peck name. It's a win win situation."

"You know I don't think that, right? You could mop the floors of 15 as long as you want for all I care. I just want you to be happy."

Gail smiled her thanks and proceeded to eat her breakfast before it got cold. She could sense Steve's glare but refused to look up at him, so Steve spoke. "Are you really sure about this? I mean, look at Traci. She's struggling between work and Leo and he has Dex. And now he's fighting for full custody. How are you going to cope?"

Gail had thought long and hard about it. She knew how her friend struggled with Leo and she was afraid the same thing might happen with Sophie. "That's why I need all the support I can get. From you, Oliver and the people around me. Even mom and dad. I can do this, Steve."

Steve nodded. Raising a child wasn't easy. And raising a child as a single parent, Gail needed a strong support system and Steve would be in it.

"You know mom and dad are going to flip, right? You'll probably give mom an aneurysm."

Gail had been dreading to tell her parents about the adoption. The possibility of disowning Gail came to the blonde's mind. It would not be easy to break the news to them. Gail had to physically shake off the anxiety that builds every time she thought about this.

"Am I the first person you've told about this?"

"No. Holly and Oliver knows."

Steve tried to look disappointed, but he understood. He knew how much Holly and Oliver meant to Gail, and she probably needed those two by her side before telling him and their parents. "What happened to family comes first, huh?"

"Be grateful I didn't wait till I had Sophie before deciding to tell you."

"You do that and mom will definitely disown you."

"So… you're okay with this?"

Steve took a moment to think about it. He wouldn't say he was okay with it, but at the same time he wasn't against it. "It's… a lot to take in. But I understand where you're coming from. I know you're great with kids and deep down I know you'll be an amazing mother. Just not right now and definitely not with a kid that isn't yours."

"I know it's a lot. And she'll be mine, when the time comes. If the time comes. It might not happen."

"You can't think like that. Like I said, if you want something, you'll make sure you get it."

Silence followed as the siblings worked on finishing their meal. Now that telling Steve was done, her parents would be next. Gail sighed.

"Can I meet her?" Steve wanted to witness the dynamic between Gail and Sophie. Maybe actually seeing her sister with Sophie would help him ease into this situation.

"Maybe, but not right now."

"I'm going to be an uncle. I'm going to be the coolest uncle on the planet." Steve smiled smugly at his little sister.

After breakfast, Gail and Steve walked into the precinct and parted ways as Gail made her way towards the locker room to get changed. It felt like a weight had been lifted after she told Steve about the adoption.

"Hey." Andy getting ready for her shift too. Gail just nodded at her as a way of saying hi.

"Detective rotation's coming up. You applying?" Andy tried strike up a friendly conversation with Gail.

Gail thought about saying no and keeping it a secret, but realized it doesn't really matter anyway. People could think what they wanted to, she was over the whole Peck name thing. "I am, actually. You?"

"Nah. I still have a lot to learn as a uniform. No rush."

"Good for you."

Andy was done getting ready. She closed her locker door and moved in the direction of the parade room. She turned back around after taking a few steps.

"Hey, Gail, I'm sure you'll get it. You'd do great." Andy smiled sincerely at Gail.

Gail wasn't expecting such response from her colleagues, and her heart warmed against her will at knowing people actually believed in her. She returned a smile to the uniformed brunette. "Thanks Andy."

* * *

"So are you and Holly back together? Are you guys going to do the whole long distance thing or what?" Gail's partner of the day, Dov, inquired while driving the squad car around a more fancy part of Toronto, a neighborhood of mansions and bungalows. Gail hated this part of town. Mainly because she grew up in this area and being assigned to patrol near where Gail spent her childhood, teenage and young adult years under the wrath of Elaine Peck dug up some pretty awful memories for the blonde. Gail predicted there wouldn't be much to protect the rich and self-entitled residents of Greenwood from since the crime rate at the neighborhood was nearly nonexistent. She would much rather spend this time with Holly than sitting in a squad car with Dov talking about her relationship with the brunette. Dov seemed to be in a better mood. Chloe, on the other hand, was still a mess. Gail wondered how much tears the redhead could produce before she finally run out of them from all the random crying she'd been doing. Dov might not look that upset, but Gail knew he was just as heartbroken as Chloe even though he was the one who initiated their break up. Dov was just better at hiding it. Gail genuinely wanted them to make things right because the nerd empire needed their king and queen back together again. The somber mood at work or at the Penny whenever the two was in proximity of each other was really getting on Gail's nerves. They needed to sort their shit out.

"None of your business."

"I mean, long distance relationships are meant to crash and burn." Dov simply shrugged off Gail's hostility.

A part of Gail knew Dov was right. When Steve just graduated from the academy and became a rookie, his girlfriend at the time moved to Europe for a new job. They lasted two months before the girl broke it off. And the last time she checked — which was a _very_ long time ago — the couples in the group that Gail hung out with in university broke up months after graduation, some moving to another state, claiming the new work environment changed them and they've met new people and it just wouldn't work out even though they vowed to stay together forever. Gail was only interested in flings and casual relationships that wouldn't involve heartbreaks and tears during her school years. Gail knew what she and Holly had was more than some young and naive love and Holly wasn't moving across the ocean, but from what she witnessed, it painted a very bleak picture for them. Gail would do anything to be with Holly, but she wasn't sure long distance was one of them. Since they were on an honesty and openness streak, Gail made a mental note to talk to Holly about where they stood relationship wise sometime soon.

"What do you know about being in long distance relationships?" asked Gail, suddenly seeming interested on the subject.

"My secondary school girlfriend Amanda and I, were so in love it felt like we could overcome anything being thrown at us. At least that was what I thought. She was going to a different college and a month after school started I found out she had cheated on me."

Gail scoffed, it didn't surprise her that Dov experienced something that came out of a teen drama. "What did you expect from your puppy love? Of course it wouldn't work out."

"Hey, there are couples that made it through their school years and ended up living happily ever after. Don't mock on puppy love. True love can conquer anything." Dov warned semi-seriously.

Gail tried not to laugh at Dov. She knew in some way Dov was just being nice and trying to help. And also to take his mind off of Chloe. Luckily, the radio came to live, sparing Gail from having to carry on the conservation any further.

_1504 there's a 911 in your vicinity, report of an armed man threatening the caller at 24 Amber Street._

"1504 copy. We're on our way." _Great. So much for a peaceful shift._ Gail hit the sirens and the pair made it to the given address in less than a minute.

When they got out of the car and arrived on the front porch of the massive house, loud screaming and shouting were heard through the big and tall wooden door. _You called the cops?!_ Gail had a feeling this wasn't something that could be resolved without someone getting arrested or hurt, if they don't stop it soon. Right after that thought ran through her mind, a gunshot pierced through the confines of the house and out into the neighborhood. _The next time I pull the trigger I won't miss!_ The door was slightly ajar and Gail's hand instinctively reached for her gun and wasted no time in rushing through the house with Dov right behind her. A man probably in his mid-30s or earlier 40s dressed in crumpled shirt with a loose tie around his neck and pants, looked rather unhinged as he was pointing a gun at a woman, probably the one who called for help. The woman looked younger, probably in her mid-20s had a huge wound on her head, blood trickled down the right side of her face and coating long blonde hair.

"This is the police! Put the gun down now!"

The man pointed the gun at Gail who was pointing her own gun at him, panic and fear rushing over him at the sight of cops. When Dov emerged from behind Gail with his own gun, the hysteric looking man moved his gun between the two cops aimlessly. The hand holding the gun started shaking uncontrollably. After switching back and forth between Dov and Gail, he decided to stay pointing at Gail. Gail stopped breathing. She heard a faint shout from Dov over the sound of her own heartbeat, asking the man to put the gun down, this time using a much harsher tone. The man shouted back, but Gail couldn't make the words as her mind immediately blanked. It must've been a threat, because she saw Dov taking a couple of steps back and his mouth moved, but this time she make anything out of it. She tried to swallow down the anxiety that was beginning to rise from her. Mouth opening and closing like a calm, words failing to form out of it. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath then, hoping it would calm her down even a little bit to allow her brain some time to restart. _Okay, try to talk the suspect down._ Blue eyes opened to look into frantic grey ones.

"Sir, please out down the gun. I'm sure we can talk about this. What's your name, sir?"

"Henry. That's not the point. This bitch over here completely screwed me over! She deserves to die!" He waved the gun at the woman before quickly moving it back towards Gail.

"Henry, I'm Gail. And this is Dov. Nobody deserves to die, at least not today, okay?"

"But she does!"

_Maybe that wasn't a good idea._ "Why don't you tell us how exactly did she screw you over?"

"She made me fall in love with her, marry her, pretend to be a loving wife and now she cheated on me with my best friend and he had the board fire me in order to take over my company!" Henry shouted with bloodshot eyes and veins popping at his neck.

"Wow, okay, that is a lot for a man to go through. I feel your pain, Henry. All that hard work you invested on the company, gone, just like that." Perhaps playing the sympathy card might score some points with Henry?

"And now I have nothing. Nothing!"

"That's not true. You're healthy and you're alive. You look like a smart man, Henry. I'm sure you'll find a way to get your company back. We'll help you."

"How?! There's nothing you can do!"

"I'm sure there's something that jerk is hiding. Something illegal. Everybody's got something to hide. I'll run a background check and open an investigation."

Dov could only watch the scene unfold in front of him, afraid that any sudden movements might spook Henry into pulling the trigger at his partner. He looked like a bomb ready to go off at any moment. Suddenly regaining the ability to speak, he too tried to persuade Henry into putting the weapon down. Gently, this time. "Yeah, Henry. I'm sure we can talk about this back at the station. Heck, I'll put her in the back of my squad car and bring her in and you can stay right here."

Henry seemed interested in his proposition, so Dov added "But you have to put the gun down first."

Henry became even more deranged at Dov's words, like an animal gone berserk at the sight of its enemy. He looked at Dov as he shouted at the top of his lungs. "YOU'RE JUST LYING TO ME!"

That was when it happened. Everything started to move in slow motion. Nausea overtook her stomach and Gail felt dizzy by the lack of breathing. Gail could hear her own breathing, her heartbeat and feel the pulse on her neck. Henry lost control of his hand. It was swinging the gun loosely as he shouted at Dov. The finger that was on the trigger slipped and another gunshot echoed around the high ceiling and large open space of the foyer. She blinked. Gail jumped backwards at the contact of the bullet touching her skin, splitting it open. Her head knocked against the wall behind her with a loud thud and she fell onto the cold marble floor at the pain of both impacts that happened in a split second.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mistakes are all mine. Hope you'll like this chapter!

**Day 9**

Gail was feeling a pair of eyes threatening to burn a hole at the back of her head. A pair of chocolate brown eyes. And she knew whose chocolate brown eyes it belonged to. Sleeping on her side, Gail opened her eyes and looked at the window in front of her. It was dark outside. She had no idea what time and how long she slept for. After Dov drove them back home and walked her to her bedroom, Gail had to convince him that she didn't need someone to watch over her while she sleep, because that would be creepy. Dov then went back out to the living room to wait for Holly. The moment Gail got comfortable on her bed, she was out like a light. Taking a deep breath and turning to look at the brunette who was sitting on a chair near the door, Gail braced herself for a lecture or something equally serious.

"You're awake." Holly stood up from the chair and took the few steps toward Gail's bed.

"What time is it?"

Holly checked her watch. "A little after two. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," Gail was surprised she slept for so long and so deep into it that she didn't realize Holly was there, probably the whole time, staring at her back. The lack of sleep from the past few days and the medication she took back at the hospital probably had something to do with it. "How long have you been sitting there?"

Holly shrugged, "A while," she had been at the apartment for almost as long as Gail was. She arrived minutes after Gail had fallen asleep. She interrogated Dov for answers, what happened and how badly injured was Gail. At that moment Dov understood what Gail told him back at the hospital. It was weird to see the normally calm and composed doctor to be feeling so distraught and worried. But it was heartwarming to see that Holly deeply cared for his friend. Dov told her in summary of what happened earlier, reassuring Holly that Gail was okay before making his way back to 15.

_Henry immediately dropped the gun and turned towards the opposite direction in an attempt to escape though the door that led to the backyard. He didn't manage to get too far before Dov caught up and tackled him onto the ground. The two men landed on the ground with a grunt and Dov took out his handcuffs to tie the deranged man up. After ensuring the cuffs were secured with nowhere to run, he radioed for backup and EMTs on his way back to check up on Gail. He gulped as his feet moved on its own accord to rush to Gail's side. He didn't turn to look back at Gail who was on the floor as he went after Henry. It all happened so fast. Dov knew Gail was definitely shot at, just wasn't sure how bad it was. He ran past the injured woman and told her to stay where she was._

_Gail's right hand was cradling her upper left arm, blood seeping through pale fingers but luckily there wasn't much blood. "Gail, Gail! Are you okay?"_

_"I'm fine. Just a graze. My head hurts though. Did you get him?" Gail asked through gritted teeth._

_Dov let out a relieved breath. 15 could do with enough gunshots for the moment. "Yeah, I cuffed him and help is on the way."_

_"Okay, good. Go check on the woman. I'll be fine."_

_Dov asked for a name after looking over the woman's head wound and assuring her that the ambulance was on its way. Alison was her name. She told him that she was supposed to be home alone, that Henry left for work but he caught her off guard and pushed her against a door jamb. Shortly after that back up arrived along with the EMTs to take Henry to the station for further investigation and the two injured women to the hospital in separate ambulances. Gail gave up protesting and let Dov ride with her to the hospital._

_It was just a superficial gunshot wound just like Gail had confirmed. The doctor patched her up and told her that she was lucky to get away with just a graze on her arm and a couple of stitches. Even though Gail reassured the doctor that she felt fine and her head wasn't as painful as before, he ordered a brain scan and X-ray as a precaution to check for further brain damage. At the end of it Gail got out of her shift with a bullet graze and a swollen bump on her head. She couldn't wait to get back to the apartment and get some sleep._

_"No, you're not leaving here alone." Dov warned the blonde and stopped her from getting up from the gurney._

_"Watch me." She pushed Dov out of the way but failed._

_"I'm serious, Gail. You shouldn't be left alone at the apartment with Chris and I both still on shift."_

_"Then what am I supposed to do, check in upstairs for the night? I don't have a concussion or anything serious, Dov. I'm not going to pass out."_

_"Still, it would be better if someone else could keep a close eye on you." Dov shrugged, not persuaded by Gail's reasoning._

_Gail rolled her eyes. She just wanted to get some sleep in her own bed. "Are you going to call Superintendent Peck? Because I'm not going to."_

_Dov immediately shook his head, that was a terrible idea. "No freakin' way." He stood in front of Gail with his hands in his hips, eyes staring hard at the floor, thinking. "Oh! What about Holly?"_

_Now that, was a terrible idea. "No no no. Absolutely not! She'll freak! Plus I'm sure she's busy packing and getting stuff done for San Francisco." Gail thought about the Ford shooting, how worried Holly was when she heard that the blonde was being shot at. Imagine her reaction at actually getting shot, even if it was just a graze?_

_"I'm sure she won't mind. You're important to her. That's it, I'm calling her. Give me your phone and I'll get her contact number."_

_"No, you can go get her after sending me home. I don't want her speeding through traffic. No need for the two of us to land in the hospital today."_

_"Okay, but I'll get Chris to go."_

_Gail relented. She really wanted to sleep. The headache was killing her. "Whatever. But I suggest you get out of there once you dropped me off. You won't want to deal with Holly."_

_"Fine. Give me her address, I'll tell Chris and then we can go."_

When Holly turned and left the room, Gail's stomach sunk and she immediately thought the worst. Maybe she just came to check if Gail was alive and since she was, it was time for Holly to leave. But those thoughts were squashed when Gail heard the sound of the tap running. She let out a relived breath, Holly just went to the bathroom, apparently to clean her hands so she could examine Gail's arm. "Let me check your wound and I'll get some clean bandages." said Holly as she sat on the edge of Gail's bed.

Gail moved her arm away, feeling a bit nervous that Holly was being so calm with her. It was unnerving. "You don't have to."

Holly simply tilted her head slightly and glared at Gail. Suddenly feeling bashful under such an intense look, she swallowed hard and offered her injured arm to the brunette almost instantly. Holly removed the bandages, studied the stitches under close scrutiny before reaching out to the bedside table for the antibiotic ointment given by the doctor to clean the wound. After doing her thing, she set Gail's arm gently down on the bed. Gail's headache went away after the long nap she'd taken and she shouldn't feel any pain unless she touched the bump on her head.

"I leave you for one day and you go and get yourself shot." The tone Holly used was one of resignation.

That was not the tone Gail was expecting. The words, maybe, but not the way Holly said it. Gail should be glad that Holly wasn't going to freak out on her and over worry about her well-being. But she secretly wanted it to happen because if it did, Gail would know that the brunette cared for her. Gail immediately thought that was quite a sick way to want people to care. She knew Holly cared, though.

"It was just a graze, Hol. I wasn't shot."

"If the bullet made contact, even if it was just a graze, you've been shot. At least to me." Holly shrugged but kept her tone as calm and casual as she could.

The silence was getting to Gail. "You're not mad?"

"You're waiting for me to flip out, aren't you?"

"Well, maybe just a little."

Holly sighed and stared at Gail's blanket. "When Chris appeared at my front door and told me you've been shot, I stopped breathing and I thought I was going to pass out. Working with dead people on a daily basis pretty much made me assume the worse, I honestly thought you were dead." Holly's voice cracked at the last few words. She reached forward to grab Gail's hand and linked their fingers together. She took a shuddered breath as she recalled the exact moment her heart stopped beating for a few seconds. "And a part of me died, too."

Gail's heart clenched tightly at the sight of Holly feeling so upset. She quickly raised her other free hand to catch the stray tear that almost rolled down Holly's cheek, refusing to let it fall. _Diaz, you idiot._ Gail mentally scolded Chris, wishing he could've something less serious, starting with 'everything's okay' or something. She squeezed Holly's hand tightly. "But I'm not dead. I'm here. Very much alive." When Holly still hadn't looked up from her staring contest with the blanket, Gail pulled their linked hands over her own chest, pushing the tanned palm over where her heart was at. "Feel this." And Holly felt it. The strong beating of the blonde's heart, working hard to pump blood through her veins, keeping her alive and breathing.

Holly closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on the beating of Gail's heart, it was calming her nerves and she offered Gail a small smile. "When I arrived here, Dov told me what happened. And my mind went into overdrive. What if the man who shot you hadn't missed? What if you were standing half an inch closer to the left? What if the bullet managed to hit your artery and you bleed to death on scene? So I started freaking out when Dov left but you were sleeping and I thought, maybe I should wait until you wake up to freak out on you. But I had time to think and digest everything. I tried to focus on the good, to be extremely grateful you're okay instead of thinking about the what ifs." She took a breath and continued, "But I don't know if I could handle it the next time you get shot."

"There won't be a next time. You can't think like that."

Holly sighed. "There will always be a next time, you might not get shot but there are other ways to get injured, or even die. Your job is extremely dangerous and I always forget until something happens and I worry all over again."

"I'm applying for the detective rotation. Once I become a detective it'll be a lot safer."

That did make Holly feel a bit better. But just a little bit. She wondered if she would ever stop worrying about the blonde, even if she was in another country. "I don't know if I can leave yo—"

Gail shook her head violently. She knew where Holly was going with this. "No. don't say it, you're _going._ I'll personally escort you onto the plane if I have to. I'll be okay, I promise. Besides, I have a bunch of people that'll always have my back."

"But—"

She covered Holly's mouth with her own hand to stop her from having this discussion. Gail would never forgive herself if Holly missed such an amazing opportunity because of her. "No buts, end of discussion." She waited for Holly to nod her acknowledgement before retreating her hand. When Holly remained quiet, Gail leant forward to kiss Holly softly on the lips, lingering a little. When she pulled back, she attempted to move from her bed to go to the kitchen. Holly stopped her.

"Where are you going?"

"To the kitchen. I'm thirsty."

"It's okay, I'll go get you some water. Just stay put."

Gail thought about objecting, but decided against it. She nodded and leant back down against her pillow. Holly was almost at the door when Gail called out for her.

"Hey Hol,"

Holly spun back to face Gail. "Yeah? You need anything else?"

Gail's heart swell against the confines of her chest. The amount of love she felt for Holly was more than she could contain. More than anyone else she had felt for. Holly was the only person who cared so deeply about her that she even questioned her decision to leave the city, leave Gail. No one ever cared enough to give up anything for her — not that she would ever ask for anything — not even her own parents. She didn't know what she did to deserve such an amazing person, but the undeserving feeling she felt at the same time proved her right once again because Holly would be leaving her in a few days. Gail smiled nonetheless. To have Holly in her life even for a minute was better than not having Holly in her life at all. _Gail Peck looking at the brighter side of things,_ even surprised Gail herself. This was one of those times when she finally let herself truly believe that she'd grown and changed for the better. But Holly, on the other hand, always knew Gail had such positivity in her, she just hadn't found the right time to show it yet. What Gail deemed as changes and growth was already there, Gail just had to dig deeper to find it and not hide under the surface of snark and guarded walls.

"I love you," Blue eyes shone with adoration and soft pink lips curved into a sweet smile.

The overwhelming emotions Gail felt for Holly was palpable. Holly was taken aback by the sincerity of the moment and she didn't want to break it. Her lips automatically pulled to the side of her face into her trademark lopsided grin, the one Gail never got tired of seeing.

"I love you, too."

* * *

It was around four in the morning when Gail and Holly positioned themselves comfortably on the couch in the living room. Gail complaint she was hungry and Holly managed to whip up a snack for the blonde with what was available in the fridge and cabinets. And after devouring her ham sandwich — which Gail was grateful for because the last time when she wanted to make some grilled cheese the bread was mouldy — she found herself feeling too alert to fall back to sleep. So Gail turned on the game console, adjusted the volume low enough not to wake anybody up and promised Holly not to get too agitated while playing if she doesn't wish to feel any pain. She stayed in the same sitting position with Holly's head in her head lap even though she told the brunette she could sleep in her bed if she wanted to, but Holly refused to leave Gail's side. She convinced Gail the couch was just fine. So after a couple of hours of gameplay, Gail switched the console off trading it for some morning rerun of whatever sitcoms or reality shows that was available as the sun finally rose. Her body clock was screwed up. But if she could fit in a nap at the right time, it should be able to get back to normal.

Gail got the day off thanks to her injuries, but her roommates didn't. So when Chris emerged from his room to get ready for his shift, Gail quickly turned her head around to look at him with her index finger on her lips to tell him to keep quiet, afraid of waking Holly. She felt bad for keeping Holly up until four in the morning. Chris walked to the couch and peeked over the back cushions to see a sleeping brunette in Gail's lap. He smiled, nodded then went to the kitchen for some breakfast in silence. Gail returned her attention back to the TV and resumed rubbing her thumb gently across Holly's arm. She felt Holly snuggled closer towards her and smiled.

After Chris waved his goodbye, Gail's eyelids started to droop as sleep made its sneaky return. She switched off the TV, leant further into the cushion and closed her eyes. She wasn't sure how much time had passed by the time she heard Dov's yawn and him stretching. It could be minutes or hours. Holly started to stir too.

"Oh, hey guys. Good morning." Dov walked into the living room and plopped himself onto the armchair. Holly straightened herself and rubbed at her sleepy eyes. Gail automatically reached for the glasses on the coffee table and handed it to Holly.

"What time is it?"

Dov answered through another yawn. "Eleven thirty. Glad I have today off. I slept for a really long time. It feels good."

"Good morning, Dov. Yeah, you went to bed quite early last night." Holly said while slipping her glasses on.

Gail had a questioning look on her face. She turned to look at Holly. "How did you know what time Dov went to bed?"

"When he came back last night he came to your bedroom to check on you. Then he told me he was going to bed."

"Oh."

"So how's your arm? And your head? Still hurts 'like a fucking gorilla stomping on it'?" asked Dov.

Gail closed her eyes and took a deep breath to brace herself for what was to come. She was sure Holly was going to flip out this time. Holly whipped her head towards Gail. She didn't know about that. "What's with your head? Why does it hurt? Why didn't you tell me about it?!" She then turned towards Dov. "And _you_ didn't tell me about it yesterday?!"

Dov raised both of his hands up in the air. "I thought Gail would've told you herself." When Holly arrived at the apartment yesterday, Dov simply explained that Gail got hurt on the job, they were responding to a 911 call of a deranged husband threatening to shoot his wife and the gun went off. Gail got checked out at the hospital and she was fine, that Holly shouldn't worry because it was nothing serious.

Holly immediately placed both of her hands on either side of Gail's head gently, running her fingers through short blonde locks. When she felt a bump at the side of Gail's head, she gasped. She parted the hair around that area to get a better look at the contusion. "Why didn't you tell me!"

Gail winced slightly at the contact. She quickly took Holly's hands into her own. "I knocked my head against the wall before I fell to the ground. It's just a bruise, it doesn't hurt if you don't touch it."

"Did the doctor give you an X-ray and MRI?"

"Yes, Hol. Relax. It's all good."

Holly took a deep calming breath and nodded her head. Then she narrowed her eyes at Gail. "Are there any more injuries you're not telling me?"

"Nope, I promise." Gail said as she brushed her thumbs across Holly's knuckles. Holly nodded her head again. She then decided to make herself useful around the apartment.

Dov watched on with an amused smile plastered on his face. It was rather entertaining to see Gail behave all reassuring and obedient towards Holly. None of her exes ever got that kind of treatment from the blonde but at the same time none of her exes had such power over her. And they definitely wouldn't dare to speak to Gail like that. When Dov learnt that the doctor would be moving away, he honestly thought Gail would've cut off all ties and hide from the brunette till she was on the plane. Gail ran from sticky situations and this definitely counted as one of them. Dov was surprised Gail had actually stuck around. It was evident that she loved Holly. Gail wasn't really hiding it either. Dov's heart went out to her friend. It sucked that Holly would be leaving.

Holly stood up and stretched. "You guys want some brunch? I saw a waffle machine in one of the cabinets and enough ingredients to make us some. What about Chris? Is he home?"

"He already left for his morning shift. It's alright, Holly. I can make it. You're the guest." Dov smiled at the brunette and stood up too. Gail just sat still and let the two nerds fight it out.

"No no, I insist. I've got it." Holly smiled kindly and moved to the kitchen without giving Dov the chance to disagree. She turned back abruptly towards Gail. "Oh and Gail, I'll check on your stitches after brunch, okay?"

Gail just nodded and switched on the TV.

Dov followed Holly to the kitchen. "Well, the least I could do is make us some coffee."

* * *

The sunny afternoon found them cuddling in bed after brunch. The bump on Gail's head wasn't as big as it was the previous night. Holly had changed the dressing on her arm and they were lying in bed enjoying the peacefulness of the apartment. Dov went out to get some groceries since the only thing Chris bought was some bread.

"Hey, you almost done with the packing?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Oliver offered his cabin to me since I have a few vacation days left to spare. So I was thinking, maybe, if you feel like going up to the cabin with me for a couple of days? I mean, only if you feel like it." Gail wanted Holly all to herself without the disturbance from the outside world. Just some more time to spend with her.

"I'd love to, but you're hurt, Gail."

Gail offered a reassuring smile. "I'm fine. Really. The wound is healing and my head doesn't hurt much anymore. A bit of headache here and there but nothing some painkillers can't fix." Then she added, "I just, I really want to spend some time with you. Away from all the craziness. Just the two of us."

Holly thought Gail's sudden shyness was adorable. It sounded like a great idea too. She was almost done with tying up loose ends back at home anyway. "Alright. But if you're hurting, you have to tell me."

Gail nodded eagerly. "I promise."

"Okay then. I'd love to spend some alone time with you too."

Gail beamed at Holly's quick affirmation. "Great. I'll get the key from Oliver tomorrow at work." Holly turned her head to glare at Gail. She knew what the brunette was thinking. "Just desk duty, I'm sure. Oliver probably won't let me go out onto the streets tomorrow."

When met with silence, Gail spoke again. "And after work, I'd like to take you out to dinner. Some place nice." She really wanted to spend as much time with Holly as possible.

Holly sat up at Gail's words and raised an eyebrow. "Like a date?" Gail nodded.

Holly smirked. "Officer, I'm sure you wining and dining me and bringing me out of the city for a getaway is just to get into my pants."

"Well, that's true… But I'm pretty sure I don't have to do all these to get into your pants. You'll probably take them off willingly because you just can't keep your hands off of me."

The brunette snickered but couldn't disagree with Gail though. "So arrogant, Officer Peck. But you're right, I can't." She nuzzled her nose into Gail's neck and kissed the soft skin there.

Suddenly, Gail remembered it was almost a week since she last saw Sophie. _Shit._ So much had been going on and with her injuries Gail almost forgot about their weekly meet ups. She jumped off of the bed to get her phone from her bag. Maybe she could drop by at the home for a visit instead of the park this time? She called the social worker and arranged a time as Holly continued to lie on the bed. When Gail hung up the call, she returned to the warmth of her bed to resume their cuddling session. Once Gail got comfortable, Holly rested her head on Gail's chest, listening to her steady heartbeat.

"What time are you going to visit Sophie?"

"In an hour. I'll borrow Dov's car when he comes home and drop you off first. He's not going anywhere, at least for the rest of the day." She thought about asking Holly along, but she knew it would be best not to let Sophie get too attached to the brunette.

"There's no need, I can take a cab home. It's not on the way."

Gail squeezed Holly's arm that was resting on her stomach. "Don't be silly. I want to." Holly just nodded.

"Damn. I should probably get a car soon."

"I'll give you mine, if you want." Holly was going to bring it over to Rachel's sometime soon. It was a Ford sedan she bought two years ago.

"Are you crazy? This is not some game show and I'm not winning a car." First the house and now her car?

"Of course not. You're not winning it, you're receiving it. No games necessary."

"But still, I can't accept it." Gail shook her head. This woman must be crazy. Who knew moving would get her into such a giving mood? Maybe Gail would feel the same when it was her time to move out of the apartment. Except the only thing she had worthy of giving was the blender she bought for the house. And she would definitely bring that along with her.

"Gail, you're buying a house and you need a car. Just take it. Save some money for yourself and Sophie. If you decide not to have it, hand it over to Rachel. That was my initial plan."

Gail contemplated Holly's idea for a few minutes. That would be one less thing to worry about. Maybe she could use it for a while until she was sure she had enough money to buy a decent car. "If only you're sure about it."

Holly smiled. It was the least she could do for the blonde. "Of course."

"I… I don't know what to say. You're too generous."

"You don't have to say anything. I love you." Holly looked up to place a quick kiss on Gail's lips.

Gail hugged Holly tighter in her arms. "Thank you. I love you too."


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the slow update, wanted to be one chapter ahead but I've been busy with stuff and the new Sims 4. Kinda disappointed with it though. Apologies if parts of it sound weird. Wrote most of it half asleep on the bed.
> 
> Mistakes are all mine as usual. Enjoy :)

**Day 10**

Gail had no idea why she was so nervous about their date. On her way to Holly's, she tried to pin point the exact moment her nerves started to get to her. She had promised to take Holly to someplace nice, cozy, with great food and wine. Holly, on the other hand had told Gail that she was perfectly fine with just hanging out at home with takeout. She knew Gail would rather go for some diner food than spending a fortune at a fancy restaurant that needed the blonde to practice some fine dining etiquette. But Gail was adamant about bringing Holly out, that Holly deserved to be pampered. Holly pretty much melted at that statement. Because Gail had never planned a proper dinner date before, she overestimated her ability to make reservations at somewhere nice on a weeknight in Toronto. So when she accidentally spilled that she would going on a date that night with Holly to Chloe, her partner of the day during her shift, Gail decided to ask for some help from the redhead since she couldn't stop pestering Gail about where she was taking Holly.

_"I haven't thought about where to go yet. I'll think of somewhere during lunch break and make reservations then." Gail said as she gripped the steering wheel harder, trying to stay focused on the road ahead._

_"What? You are never going to get a table with last minute reservations. Unless you're bringing Holly to MacDonald's." Chloe turned to look at her partner with wide eyes. She couldn't believe how unaware Gail was about going on dates._

_Gail continued to look straight ahead, shrugging. "I'm sure there's a table for two somewhere in this city."_

_Chloe snickered. "Okay, good luck with that."_

_Gail stepped on the brakes when the traffic light turned red. She narrowed her eyes at her partner. "What do you know about dinner dates? You and Dov used to hang out at the apartment or the Penny most of the time." Gail was starting to regret bringing up her ex's name although it wasn't on purpose, but the redhead seemed okay with it. The blonde let out a small relieved sigh when it looked like Chloe wasn't going to have a breakdown in the squad car in the middle of their shift._

_"I've had boyfriends before, you know. And I've been on enough dates to know where serves the best pastas and crème brulee."_

_Gail liked crème brulee. "Like where?" For once Chloe managed to pique Gail's interest._

And Chloe was right. When lunch time arrived, Gail started googling places to call and every one of them were fully booked. Lunch break was spent with Gail on the phone the whole time, bites of her sandwich and sips of her coffee in between phone calls with Chloe by her side putting on her 'I told you so' face. The suggestions the redhead had given Gail wasn't helpful too. Gail was starting to panic. She should've agreed to takeout at Holly's. But Gail Peck would arrest someone if she had to, just to get a table. Nobody was going to stop her, damn it. After almost an hour of searching the internet and racking her brain for any more restaurants she knew about, one more came to mind. It was one she went with her parents and Steve about a year ago. She only remembered it because of the awesome dessert menu. With two minutes left before their break ended and one last try, Gail looked up the phone number of Giorgios and dialed with her fingers crossed. Gail may have jumped for joy a few times when she was told someone had canceled their reservation an hour ago. She may or may not have threatened Chloe to keep her mouth shut about her sudden outburst of joy.

As she turned the corner onto Holly's street, driving Chris's truck, she thought about the dates she and Holly had went on. A lot of them were movie nights or dinner at some Chinese place nobody knew about. It was when Gail got out of the vehicle, pulling at her tight blue dress with sleeves long enough to cover the wound on her arm and checking her makeup in the side mirror that she realized when the nerves started to kick in. The moment she finally got ready and headed out of her apartment. She wanted the night to be perfect, she didn't lucked out on a table and took close to two hours getting ready to screw date night up. She wasn't sure how she was going screw it up though. Great food and Holly, hardly a recipe for disaster. Right?

So after taking a deep breath, Gail straightened her back and walked up to Holly's front door. As her knuckles almost made contact with the wooden door, she froze. Should she use the spare key she had or should she knock? While she pondered over the two choices, the door flew open helping Gail solve her problem almost immediately.

"Hey, I saw you walking up but you didn't come in. Everything okay?"

Instead of providing Holly with a reply, Gail's eyes couldn't stop themselves from taking in the brunette in front of her. The sight of Holly dressed in a loosely buttoned fitted white shirt and tight black leather pants completed with a pair of black heels was already worth the hassle of going out for the night. But the thought of undressing Holly and head straight to bed was tempting too. Holly had forgone her glasses, replacing them with contacts. And the way those bright and warm chocolate brown eyes scanned over her own body like how she did with Holly's told Gail that she had made the right decision to wear that dress. She may have taken an hour or so choosing the right outfit.

Gail swallowed, trying to find the right words. "Yeah... Everything's fine. I just... I was deciding if I should knock or let myself in."

Holly had trouble forming words too. But she recovered much quicker than Gail and opened the door wider to let the blonde in. Gail strolled into the house with Holly following right behind her. She tried to act as if she wasn't aware of Holly's eyes staring at her ass. "I see, you should've used the key. Well, I'll just be another minute and then we can go."

Gail whipped out her phone from her purse. "Take your time. We're still early. I'm calling for a cab now."

Holly went to the kitchen to get a glass of ice cold water in an attempt to douse the fire that was flickering in her lower stomach. "You haven't told me where we're going. You want something to drink while we wait?"

Gail shook her head. "Giorgios. Italian restaurant." She knew Holly liked Italian food.

Holly quickly rinsed the glass and headed towards the blonde, who was standing in the living room. "Oh, I've been there before. Great food and atmosphere." Once she was within Gail's personal space, Holly snaked her arms around her waist and pulled her close. "Hey. You look beautiful tonight." Holly whispered against Gail's lips and the blonde couldn't help but licked her lips subconsciously.

"You're not bad yourself." Gail shrugged, but Holly knew she was just putting up a front. The brunette hummed her response. Then, she added with a sly grin. "You know, I wanted to ask you to come over after shift to get ready. We could've done it together, because that's the fun part, right?"

Gail smiled back, remembering the conversation they had that night at Frank and Noelle's wedding. It seemed like a lifetime ago. "I, for one, am glad we didn't. Because I don't think we would've made it out of the bedroom."

"And I wouldn't complain." Holly finally let their lips slip against each other's in a soft kiss. When she tried to pull away, Gail tighten her grip on the brunette's neck refusing to break the kiss. Holly gladly complied. When they finally pulled away from each other, Gail remembered she left something in the truck.

"Crap, I forgot to bring in my bag of clothes. Let me just go get it really quickly." Before Holly had enough time to stop Gail and tell her that she could do it when they return later, she was already out the door. Holly picked up her purse and jacket and waited at the door for Gail. The cab pulled up in front of the house just in time as she locked the door behind them.

While walking towards the waiting cab, Gail asked Holly about their little getaway tomorrow. "You ready for tomorrow?"

"Yeah, all set. I can't wait to spend two whole days with you." Holly opened the cab's door for Gail to slide in before her.

* * *

Just like what the maître d had told Gail over the phone, the place was completely packed. Gail thought about buying the lottery tomorrow to see if she was on a lucky streak. The intimate setting and atmosphere at Giorgios was filled with couples and small groups of people. Gail could spot their table once they stepped inside, it was right in the middle of the establishment. It was big enough to sit four. Gail had hoped for a spot in the corner where the two of them could have some privacy. You win some, you lose some, right? When they reached their table and took a seat opposite of each other, the server, Daniel, handed them menus to look at. Gail just looked at Holly with a shrug when he politely asked if they wanted to start with something to drink first. Water, some wine, maybe? Although she doesn't know much about wine, as long as it's alcohol, she could go with whatever Holly decided to get for the both of them. She trusted Holly's taste.

Once the server walked away towards the drinks station of the restaurant, Holly took Gail's hand in her own and squeezed affectionately. The look in the brunette's eyes was enough to make Gail forget about their surroundings and hear the beating of her heart. "Hey, thanks for bringing me here. You didn't have to."

"I wanted to. And you're very welcome." Gail smiled warmly back at the women in front of her. Sexy librarian Holly was always her favorite. But for some reasons that Gail couldn't think of, sans glasses Holly looked incredibly hot, too. It was like those brown eyes were piercing into Gail's soul, more than usual. Gail shivered under Holly's gaze and squeezed the tanned hand back in return before looking back at her menu. Everything sounded so good, even the dishes with tomatoes.

Gail looked up from her menu intending to ask what Holly was getting but she was distracted by the faint sound of the front door opening and the polite greeting by the maître d. She almost missed hearing a woman's voice greeting him back in the busy restaurant. But she'd never miss that familiar voice anywhere she goes. She tried ignore her gut feeling of who the voice belonged to, just kept looking straight ahead unwilling to turn behind to take a look. There was a strange shift in energy around her surroundings. Gail's eyes widened, her posture automatically straightened and her body motionless. That was her default reaction within the vicinity of one person. _No._ Well, Elaine Peck was certainly an unexpected part of the recipe for disaster for what were supposed to be a romantic night for the two of them.

Holly sensed a change in Gail when she realized she was having a one sided conversation for almost a minute. She looked up to see a frozen blonde staring past her right shoulder. "Gail?" When there was no answer, Holly tried again, this time reaching forward for Gail's hand again. "Gail, are you okay?"

Blue eyes snapped from its trance and looked frantically at Holly, "Shit. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Fuck!" hissed the blonde.

"Gail? What's wrong?"

"Don't stare at the couple behind me. Just act normal." Gail mumbled, her features still frozen.

Holly took a quick glance at the man and woman behind Gail. She thought they looked incredibly familiar. Then suddenly she recalled who they were. Superintendent and Inspector Peck. Gail's parents!

Gail was clearly panicking silently in her seat, so Holly tried to act normal and calm for her. "It's your parents."

Gail shot her a look. Of course she knew who those two people were.

"You wanna go say hi?"

Gail's eyes widened even more, anymore and they would pop out of their sockets. "Fuck, no!"

"Okay… Do you want to leave?"

Before Gail could react, the hair on the back of her neck stood up before she could actually hear her name being called by her mother. Gail knew she would be spotted, short platinum blonde hair and pale skin made her stood out like a sore thumb sometimes, and this time was one of them. In a rather dimly lit room no less.

"Gail?" Elaine sped up her walk to their table when she spotted her daughter and stood in between Gail and Holly. Bill slowly followed behind her wife, a pleasant smile on his face.

Gail took a deep calming breath before pushing off from her seat and looking up acting surprise at her mother's sudden appearance. "Mom, dad, what a surprise!" She threw in a forced smile too. Holly, awkward at the sudden change of events, followed Gail's lead and stood up.

"What a pleasant surprise, indeed." Elaine looked between Gail and Holly, immediately accessing the situation. Her recently out daughter was having dinner at a fancy restaurant with another woman. This was definitely a date. And Elaine was going to make use of this coincidence to her advantage. "Aren't you going to introduce us, Gail?"

"Right." Gail cleared her throat. "Mom, dad, this is Holly Stewart. Holly, this is my mom and dad, Elaine and Bill Peck."

Holly put on a charming smile and offered her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Superintendent Peck. You too, Inspector Peck." Both of Gail's parents shook hands with Holly, exchanging greetings leaving the blonde unsure of what was happening. _This must be a dream. Actually, a nightmare._

"Looks like you ladies just got here too. Why don't we all have dinner together since this table is big enough for four?"

"Honey, I don't think we should intrude. Let's just have dinner at our own table." Bill tried to help the girls find an out even though they knew it was useless. Gail appreciated the help anyway.

Elaine waved a hand to dismiss what Bill just said. "Nonsense. I'm sure Gail and Dr. Stewart won't mind, am I right?"

Gail knew this was coming, but that didn't mean she couldn't scream internally at her mother's unwelcome arrival. Holly just looked at Gail helplessly.

"Sure. You're welcome to join us." Once they were all seated, Elaine waved the server over to order some drinks for herself and Bill.

This felt really weird. Holly would've met them months ago if things hadn't turned out the way it did. Now that her parents finally got to put a face to the name and they weren't actually together, she was afraid what would unravel during dinner, Elaine Peck style.

They ordered their food in silence. Gail usually liked quiet, but not with her mother in the same room. This was a painful silence and she felt like she was suffocating. Holly looked at Gail over her glass of wine worriedly.

"So Dr. Stewart, it's nice to finally meet the woman Gail's seeing. I have to say, I'm very impressed by your accomplishments from what Gail had told me."

The blush that overtook Gail's pale face was instant. She remembered telling her mother about Holly when she called Gail expecting a valid reason as to why she was canceling the dates Elaine helped set up, that Holly was a doctor and a forensic pathologist working for the police force. Gail didn't care about letting Elaine know she was dating a woman. It was mainly to shut her mother up so she could hang up as soon as possible. Holly turned to look back at Gail with a reassuring smile. It calmed Gail's nerves a little.

"Please, call me Holly. Thank you for your kind words, Superintendent Peck. I appreciate it."

"And you can call me Elaine. I'm off duty and you've earned it since you managed to keep my daughter in line and become a positive influence in her life. Ever since Gail came out, I've seen some good changes in her." Elaine turned to direct her next sentence at Gail. "Like applying for the detection rotation."

Gail knew Elaine wanted her to be caught off guard. But the blonde wasn't the least bit surprised that her mother had found out about it. Gail was also sure Elaine knew about the 911 call that had her arm in stitches. Elaine kept close tabs on her children since they rarely volunteer information about themselves unless needed to. The only thing Gail was fairly certain her mother had no clue of was the adoption, if not she would probably have heard from Elaine. She decided to go with the flow and play this out with her mother. "How did you know?"

"You thought I wouldn't find out?" Elaine looked at her daughter, smugness shown across her face.

Bill stepped in before Gail could find an appropriate response for her mother. "Your mother and I are glad that you've decided to move on from being a uniform. I'm sure you'll do great."

"You better make sure to get it. I don't want people to talk if you fail again. Pecks are not failures. We do not fail, not once, and definitely not twice." Elaine remembered the first time she urged Gail to apply for the detective rotation and how Gail didn't even look upset about not getting it. If it happens again, Elaine would probably try to point 15's staff sergeant in the right direction.

Silence fell over the table once again. Gail was used to her mother's criticisms. She just swallowed it down and lifted her glass of wine up to her lips for a huge gulp. Blue eyes scanned across the room for the hundredth time since her parent's arrival, refused to look at Holly.

Holly felt really bad for Gail. She couldn't imagine growing up in such a hostile environment, how little love Gail must have felt from her parents. Even though her own parents died when she was a little girl, Holly's grandma was warm and loving too. Holly wasn't going to let Elaine berate her own daughter, at least not if she was around. Holly looked Gail straight in the eye. "I'm sure Gail will get the job. If not, she'll continue to do great work on the streets. Either way I'm extremely proud of Gail."

Gail felt her heart warmed at Holly's words. Of course Holly would be brave enough to stand up to her mother. The brunette didn't have to, but Gail knew she meant every word. Elaine just hummed an acknowledgement and took a sip of wine. She decided to focus her attention on Holly.

"Tell me about yourself, your credentials, Holly. The only thing I know about you is you're one of our forensic pathologist here in the city. I want the details."

* * *

The conversation that flowed during appetizers and main course was mostly filled with Elaine interrogating Holly about everything from her age to her parents and where she went for school, even about what she does during her free time. There was of course a few jabs at Gail too. Elaine would never pass up the opportunity to put her daughter down. Holly winced internally every time that happened. She would also send a warm smile to Gail every once in a while, a way to make sure the blonde was okay. Holly answered politely although she felt a little uncomfortable by Elaine's questioning. Bill just nodded and occasionally telling Holly he was impressed by her achievements. So did Elaine, but she kept her usually cool demeanor on.

"Holly, I must say I'm really impressed. You lost your parents at such a young age and managed to pick yourself up and make a name for yourself." If Holly wasn't a lesbian, Elaine would've introduced her to Steve. She'd admit Gail did good this time. So much better than Craig and Nick put together.

"Uh, that's very kind of you to say. Do you want a refill?" Holly reached for the bottle of wine and brought it to Elaine's glass when she nodded. Holly could only say thank you that many times before she runs out of ways to say them.

"You should come to our next family dinner." Elaine turned to look at her daughter, who was staring off into space. "Gail, make sure to bring Holly along."

Gail and Holly looked at each other, unsure of what to say. Gail started to worry about the chances of Elaine inviting Holly to the next dinner when her mother practically said the word "impressed" in every one of her sentences. Both women opened and closed their mouths almost in synchronize, stuttering out errs and ahs trying to find the right words. Gail realized there was no point lying or giving her mother an excuse as to why Holly won't be able to make it. Elaine would just question Holly's absence every time she sees Gail. Telling Elaine they broke up during the next Peck dinner was an even worst idea. Elaine probably wouldn't stop asking Gail if she'd done something wrong to ruin the relationship and she would be a fool to let Holly go.

"Holly's moving to San Francisco in a few days." Gail blurted out.

Elaine looked genuinely confused. "Oh? For how long?"

"If all goes well, at least two years." replied Holly.

"A new job, I assume?"

"Yes." Holly nodded.

"So the two of you are not together?

Gail spoke. "It's complicated."

Elaine looked at her daughter. There was no need for words to be spoken, Gail knew exactly what that look meant. It was a 'you're not even a good enough reason to make somebody stay' look and Gail had to look away for a second under her mother's demeaning stare. Gail brushes off Elaine's criticisms and judgmental looks most of the time – until she reaches home to think hard about it – but this wasn't one she could shake off at that instant. She knew she shouldn't let that look get to her, but a small part of Gail believed it. That Gail wasn't worthy enough for Holly to stay.

Holly and Bill felt the awkward silence but wasn't sure if they should speak up. Elaine, however, decided to rub salt into Gail's wound.

"Although it's just our neighbor below, moving to another country is not an easy thing to do. Won't you miss anyone here?"

Holly just offered a tight lipped smile.

"Well, I appreciate all the great work you have done for the department. I'm sure San Francisco would be lucky to have you, and if there isn't anything or _anyone_ holding you back, you should definitely go."

Holly knew exactly what the older Peck was trying do to. She just wasn't sure why. It was aimed at Gail and Holly felt like the blonde shouldn't be subjected to such passive aggressive behavior. How on earth did Gail managed to endure it all her life? The pained look on Gail broke her heart.

"I'm honored to do the work I did for the forensics department and for all your kind words this evening. Elaine, Bill, it's been a pleasure but I'm afraid it's time for Gail and I to go." Holly waved for the server's attention and asked for the check

Elaine tried to look disappointed, but both Gail and Holly was through it. "Oh, okay. You know what, let us pay for tonight. As a form of a farewell dinner."

"You don't have to." Holly politely declined. Gail wanted to agree with her, since she was the one who brought Holly out, but decided against it. She wasn't going to pay for such an unpleasant evening. She should've ordered something more expensive or perhaps persevere through dessert. Her parents could afford it anyway.

"We insist." Bill said as Elaine nodded along. With that, Holly kindly accepted defeat as the server handed Bill the check.

Once Gail and Holly said their goodbyes to Gail's parents, Holly thanking them one last time, the blonde immediately flagged down a cab to head back to Holly's place. The ride back was quiet with Holly's thumb caressing the top of Gail's hand. Gail would talk once she was ready. That happened after she took off her heels and plopped down on the couch.

"I'm sorry about my mother and for dinner."

Holly followed Gail to the couch and sat next to her, pulling an arm around Gail's shoulders. "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"But I promised to take you someplace nice."

"And you did, Giorgios was great."

Gail sighed. "I mean someplace nice without my parents."

"I feel sorry you have to put up with your mother's behavior. Must be hard, growing up."

Gail just shrugged and Holly kissed the top of the blonde's head.

Holly then pulled away to look at Gail. "You know I'm really proud of you, right? I know what your mother was trying to tell you earlier. Don't listen to her. You're worth everything. I might not be able to love you here, but I'll still love you from thousands of miles away."

Gail believed every word Holly said. It helped to extinguish those thoughts her mother had planted into her brain. "I know. I love you too." Gail offered a genuine smile and leant forward to kiss Holly. She had been waiting to do that since they arrived at the restaurant.

Before they could let the kiss morph into a heated make out session, Holly broke the kiss as a sly lopsided grin appeared on her face. "I know dinner wasn't what you wish for, but I know exactly how to make up for it."

Gail couldn't help but mirror Holly's smile. "And how do you plan to do that?"

Holly stood up and walked towards the staircase before looking over her shoulders at Gail, "Why don't you come upstairs and find out?" and started stripping off her clothes making a trial to the bedroom.

Gail quickly followed to find a very naked Holly lying on the bed waiting for her. Maybe the night would get better after all. And the next day, they would drive up to Oliver's cabin to escape from the city for some much needed peacefulness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts? Kindly leave a review! Feedback appreciated :)


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the later than usual update again. Pretty busy with life and I no longer have a room to myself, so I've been finding it hard to concentrate with writing. Hopefully the next chapter would be done sooner.
> 
> Again, mistakes are all mine. It's 5.30am over here and I'm sure there are many mistakes.

**Day 11**

"My ears are bleeding!" Gail and Holly woke up a little too early for Gail's liking to get on the road heading up to the cabin. Holly had to do a quick recap of the previous night's performance and a sneak peek of what Gail would be getting later that evening to get the blonde moving on her own will. Chris kindly loaned Gail his truck for them to drive up north. After about an hour into the drive, Holly had had enough of letting Gail be in control of the radio. "They don't make pop music like they used to. Who listens to this stuff?" She quickly reached for the radio to switch to an indie rock station and focus back on the road ahead. "That's better."

"Wow okay, tone down on the judgment, I've never pegged you for a musical snob. You were perfectly fine with listening to top 10 countdowns whenever we're in the same car." Gail leant her head back on the headrest, bringing her legs up onto the dashboard and earning a look from Holly in return.

"I'm not a snob, I just know good music when I listen to them. And I was fine with it because we didn't have to drive for hours. But this time, I've had enough." Holly swatted at Gail's leg to make her put them down, but the blonde refused to budge. Holly sighed.

"Yeah, that's pretty much the definition of a music snob, Hol." Gail smiled sweetly at Holly. She might not be able to see it, but the brunette could hear it in Gail's voice. "Snobbish or not, I still love you."

"I'm so very touched by that, Gail. And I love you too. Plus, it takes one to know one." Holly smirked at Gail's sudden movement, putting down her legs and sitting up straight. She could feel blue eyes staring at her. _Too easy._

"What do you mean by that?"

Holly shrugged. "Nothing."

"It's not nothing. Elaborate, Dr Stewart."

"Oh look, let's go get some snacks." The brunette pointed in front of them. Luckily for Holly, a gas station appeared just as a sign promised about two kilometers ago. She pulled over and looked at Gail with a cheeky grin.

The blonde had been complaining about the lack of snacks for their road trip and demanded that they stop at the next gas station or convenience store to get some. Gail huffed and pouted, eyes still staring at the brunette. After a few moments she finally gave up and opened the door to get out, "This is not over. Cheese puffs are more important right now." walking towards the store without looking back at Holly. Gail wasn't really angry at her, but it was fun to tease Holly from time to time.

Holly walked through the double sliding doors and headed straight for the snacks isle because that was where Gail would definitely be. Once she spotted the blonde, Holly sidled up to her and hugged her from behind, strategically placing her lips on a particularly sensitive spot on the pale neck.

"You know I was just kidding, right?"

Gail took a shuddered breath as she felt warm breath and lips on her neck. She recovered quickly and shrugged, trying to remain cool. She knew it was failing as a smile involuntarily crept up on her face. She tried moving away from Holly to reach for a bag of cheese puffs, but the brunette tightened her grip on Gail's waist. Gail tried to wipe the smile off of her face when Holly turned her around in her arms, Holly's lips teasingly close to Gail's pouty ones.

Back when they first started dating, Holly didn't even dare to initiate such an intimate action in public towards the blonde. She remembered when they were still friends, when they hung out after work outside of the Penny, how Gail used to make a disgruntled noise at the back of her throat whenever a lovey dovey couple walked past them. Then one night, the night Gail decided to officially introduce Holly as her girlfriend to her colleagues and friends at the Penny, Gail's mood took an expected turn for the worst because Holly hadn't touched her once ever since they walked into the bar. It didn't help when Holly was playing pool with Traci, Chris and Oliver, the way her top rode up to her waist when stretching herself over the pool table, a small patch of smooth tanned skin on display. Or how Holly brushed a hand through her thick wavy hair, eyebrows furrowed in concentration and licking of her lips while planning her next shot. For a nerd, it was too sexy. She knew the brunette was trying to keep her hands to herself, never invading Gail's personal space. But Gail _wanted_ Holly to touch her, to kiss her. To do _something._ Something about the doctor had Gail defying every single rule in her relationships handbook. The irresistible pull towards Holly wasn't something Gail could ignore or fathom. She didn't know it at first, but that something was definitely love. So after her fourth drink, Gail marched towards where her girlfriend was standing while waiting for her turn, cupped both of her cheeks and kissed the brunette fiercely as if the world was ending. In a low and husky voice, Gail muttered to Holly, _"never stop touching me"_ after the crowd cheered witnessing their kiss. _God,_ they were one of those sickeningly sweet and lovesick couple, weren't they? After Gail's admission, Holly became more generous with her affection towards the blonde in public. And with her leaving in a couple of days, Gail would take any amount of affection and love she could get from the brunette.

It felt like an eternity before Holly finally leant forward to close the remaining gap to brush her lips gently against Gail's. Holly didn't care that they were standing in the middle of a convenience store at the snacks isle. She pulled Gail even closer against her, if it was even possible, and the blonde deepened the kiss, oblivious to where they were. Then she felt someone watching them intently. Gail reluctantly broke the kiss and turned to look at the pair of offending eyes. It belonged to the cashier where the snacks isle happened to be right in his line of sight. She groaned at the boy – who seemed like he should still be in school – without moving away from Holly's warm embrace.

She threw her signature icy death glare at the kid's way. "What the hell are you looking at?" Gail inquired in a raised voice so the store clerk could hear her menacing tone. Holly tried to stop her from murdering him with her stare, but the blonde just waved her away.

"You guys are so hot." The boy just replied with a wide grin, not feeling intimidated at all.

Gail rolled her eyes and decided to turn it up a notch. "Hey, kid, look away before I go back to my car and get my taser. You don't want to piss off a cop." Gail threatened, smugness apparent on her face when he muttered a sorry and immediately scanned his eyes through every corner of the store but not at the two women in front of him. Gail smirked at her victory as Holly just shook her head at the blonde's abuse of power.

They finally broke apart to get some things for the cabin, like beer and more snacks. When they were done shopping, the young cashier quickly bagged their items and took the credit card from Gail's hand without making any eye contact. Gail smirked again. Teenage boys are too easy to scare. When Gail took the bags and started to make her way out of the store with Holly, she couldn't help but turn around to look at the young man again. "Stay in school, kid." Gail then proceeded to stroll out of the sliding doors.

Oliver mentioned that the cabin probably won't have anything to eat and drink and they should stop by at the farmers' market off the road on the way up to the cabin for some food. The kitchen was fully supplied with utensils, pots and pans, so they could cook whatever they wanted. Hell, they could even bake a cake using the oven. Holly beamed at the sight of the market when they finally reached there after a few hours of driving. Gail offered to take over but Holly didn't mind driving them all the way there. Farmers' market meant fresh and organic food and her mind started to brainstorm meals for their two days stay. Gail simply grumbled and followed closely behind Holly. She was perfectly fine with eating junk food in bed for two whole days. In fact, she had no intentions of leaving the bed. But knowing Holly, none of that would actually happen.

After getting their groceries and another twenty minutes' drive, Oliver's cabin finally showed up at the end of the road. They both got out of the car and got their stuff out from the back and headed up the steps. Gail looked around the surroundings of the cabin. She nodded, satisfied the peaceful and green environment. The usually lively area during summer time was quiet as predicted. It was still quite cold for camping and holiday at the cabins. Just the kind of environment Gail wished for, no screaming and yelling from kids and cars honking and driving through. Upon reaching the front door, Gail fished out the key and unlocked the door. Holly took a step towards the door but before she could get into the house, Gail put a hand out to stop her. Holly looked at Gail with a raised eyebrow. Gail knelt by her bag that was on the ground to retrieve something, but Holly couldn't see what was it until the blonde finally found what she was looking for and turned around.

"What's that?" Holly pointed at the two small bunches of dried up flowers tied in purple ribbons.

Gail looked for a suitable place to put it down. The window by the door would do. "Oliver gave it to me, Celery made this for us. It's to ward off 'negative energy' to protect the cabin and us." Gail shrugged. Oliver made her promise not to forget about putting the protection flowers somewhere near the front and back doors, as per Celery's instructions. She walked around the house to place the second bunch of flowers near the back entrance.

Holly looked at it in amusement. As a doctor and firm believer of science, she wasn't sure how a bunch of dead flowers could protect them from anything. Nevertheless, she was grateful because Celery was kind enough to care about their wellbeing. When Gail returned, she looked at the blonde.

"So, can we go in now? Or do we have to perform some sort of ritual?"

Gail frowned. That would make them look crazy, no offense to Celery. "No, I don't think so. If so, would you do it?"

Holly shook her head fervently.

"I thought so. Let's get our things inside." Gail carried their bags into the cabin with Holly trailing behind.

After putting away groceries and belongings and making the bed, they settled down on the couch in the living room. It took all of Gail's willpower not to jump Holly right after putting the bed sheets on. Holly removed her glasses and closed her eyes for a short rest, feeling a little tired after driving for hours. Gail moved closer to Holly, raising her arm for Holly scoot to her side. The brunette rested her head on Gail's shoulder and closed her eyes again, focusing on the soothing feeling of Gail's fingers mindlessly running up and down her arm.

"You tired?"

"A little."

Gail kissed the top of Holly's head and rested her cheek against it. "Wanna take a nap?"

"Nah, Let's go take a walk, check out the place." Holly moved her head away from Gail's shoulder and put her glasses back on again.

"There are only trees here, Holly. Oliver might've told me about a lake nearby but it's kinda cold." She really just wanted to stay indoors with the brunette, preferably in a bed, naked. On the couch by the fireplace sounded great, too.

"Don't be a baby. We've brought jackets and extra blankets. Let's go, I wanna see the lake." Holly got up and held a hand out for Gail to take. Gail stayed still for a while, pouting, but eventually caved and took Holly's hand.

* * *

"It's beautiful out here. It's really cold, but beautiful." Gail admitted, snuggling closer to Holly who had her front against the blonde's back. They were perched on a giant rock by the lake wrapped up in thick clothing and in each other.

"Yeah, it's nice. We should come back here tomorrow for a picnic if the sun is out and warm enough." Holly closed her eyes and held onto Gail a little tighter, trying to save this moment into her mind. The sound of a groan from Gail made her open her eyes.

"I just want to stay inside with you all day, is that too much to ask, Hol?"

Holly smiled. "But it would be nice to come out here for a while, to have some fresh air. Then, we'll go back to the cabin and you can do whatever you want."

Gail suddenly looked really interested in the brunette's offer. "Whatever I want?"

Holly nodded. "Yes, whatever you want."

Silence fell over the both of them as Gail started to plot what she wanted from the brunette. Holly could practically hear the gears turning in Gail's head. Based on the cheeky smile on the blonde's face, it probably had something to do with them naked in bed.

Holly started to ponder about her impending departure during their car ride to the cabin. While Gail took a nap beside her, the brunette had some time to herself and all she could think about was San Francisco. It may not be obvious, but Holly was freaking out about the new job. She'd been freaking out ever since she accepted it, but she threw that thought to the back of her mind, Gail serving as a welcome distraction. She would have enough time to freak out once she gets on the plane. But not now, not this moment. She needed to be in the present with the blonde, cherishing every second. But when she was left to herself, her mind started to go into overdrive. Would she fit in there? Would she be great at her job? What if she screws up? Starting over in another country frightened the brunette. What about Gail? That subject alone scared her to no end. She wanted to be with Gail, do the whole long distance thing, but would Gail agree to it? If so, would they survive it? Was their love really strong enough to conquer all?

"Gail, what are we?"

Holly immediately felt the blonde stiffen at her question. Might as well get it out there, since the both of them had been thinking about it a lot during these past few days. Besides, neither of them could escape from one another since they were in the middle of nowhere and they arrived in the same vehicle. No place to run and no place to hide. At least not forever.

It took a while before Gail said anything, "I don't know." she sighed and continued. "What do you want us to be?"

"I don't know either. But I know that I love you, and I want to be with you."

Gail started to relax into Holly again. "I want to be with you too."

"But we need to decide before I leave. Are we going to do this? With you here and me thousands of miles away?"

Gail took a moment to think about it. She had been giving it a lot of thought, but after Holly brought it up, Gail had to think it through again. If she said yes, there would be lots of flying back and forth between San Francisco and Toronto. That wouldn't be cheap. And if Holly decided to return after her two year contract, they would live happily ever after here in the city, hopefully with Sophie in the picture too. And worst case scenario, their relationship couldn't handle the long distance and changes in each other's lives and they break up over the phone.

But Gail would hate herself for not giving them this chance. Even if they really break up, at least she knew she had fought her best to keep them together. She couldn't let Holly go. Not right now and not forever.

Finally, Gail nodded, breaking the stillness in their warm cocoon. "I think we should at least try."

Holly nodded back. "Okay." _So this is happening._

After bringing that long overdue conversation to an end, the women fell back into comfortable silence again until the sun was beginning to set. It was getting colder and Holly nudged the blonde to get up so they could return to the cabin for dinner. Once inside and into the warmth of the room, Holly walked towards the kitchen to prepare dinner. The brunette took some ingredients out of the fridge and bags before going to the bathroom. Gail went to the fridge for some beer. It took a while to find the bottle opener. Gail almost gave up the search to use the edge of the counter, but Holly found it in the bathroom. Gail made a mental note to ask Oliver why on earth did he put the opener in the bathroom. She opened two bottles and handed one over to Holly.

"What are you making?" Gail asked after taking a gulp of the smooth beer.

"Pan fried salmon and some salad. We can have some cut fruits for dessert too."

Gail smirked. "Oh, I plan on having dessert. Just not fruits. And certainly not at the dining table."

Holly choked on her beer, almost spitting it out. She shook her head. Gail and her dirty mind.

Without a response from the brunette, Gail decided to continue her teasing. "Well, I don't mind eating my dessert at dining table too."

"Okay, okay. I get it." Holly raised both of her hands to stop Gail.

"Do you need help?" The sultry tone in Gail's voice gone.

"Uh, you can make the salad if you want. The fish takes a short time to cook, we should have dinner shortly." Holly pointed to the bag of vegetables.

Gail nodded and went to work after Holly warned her not to put too much salad dressing. When she was done with the salad, she decided to set up the dining table. Gail had found a bunch candles in one of the cabinets while she was looking for the bottle opener earlier. She took them out to the dining table along with a tablecloth and began setting up the table. Her stomach growled at the smell of salmon sizzling in the pan.

"Dinner's ready." Holly called over her shoulder at Gail. The blonde emerged from the dining area to help bring the dishes to the table. Holly looked at the candlelit room and smiled adoringly at Gail.

"Saw them in the cabinet, thought it would be a good idea." Gail shrugged.

"Is it, it looks really romantic." Holly put down the plate of salmon she was holding and moved towards the blonde for a soft kiss. She lingered for a while before pulling away, pleased to see a dazed look on Gail's face. Gail would never get used to Holly's kisses.

"Let's eat."

* * *

Gail dried the dishes after Holly washed them. They in fact had some strawberries and mangoes for dessert. They worked hand in hand, standing incredibly close to each other, hips and shoulders almost touching. They could feel the heat radiate off of each other in the close proximity. The alcohol from their third bottle of beer respectively buzzed through their veins, cheeks flushed and breathing unsteady. Both women knew where the night would take them and they started to work a bit faster at the thought of ending the night in bed in a tangle of limbs and sheets. After washing the last of the cutleries and passing them to Gail, Holly washed her hands and headed towards the bedroom without exchanging a word with the blonde. Gail knew exactly where Holly was going and she picked up her pace and shoved the cutleries back into their rightful place. She took a deep breath before making her way to the bedroom. When she reached the doorway and looked inside the room, Holly wasn't in it.

"Hol?" No answer. She decided to take a step into the dark room.

Before she knew it, Gail was pushed against the wall beside the door by Holly. Fingers roamed across the pale skin of the blonde's back underneath her shirt as Holly's kisses moved from her mouth to her jaw and the expanse of her neck. Gail's eyes shut involuntarily and whimpered when a thigh was added into the mix. After regaining the ability to move, Gail reached for the bottom of Holly's top and pulled it over the brunette's head revealing her in a black bra. Gail licked her lip as she watched Holly's chest rise and fall due to heavy breathing. Long dark wavy hair cascading down tanned shoulders, smooth toned stomach slightly trembling and glasses somewhat askew, Gail took in the sight of Holly. Love, lust and want evident in her brown eyes and Gail absolutely loved this side of the brunette, the vulnerability to Holly's hunger to consume her lover whole. Gail wanted to remember this moment forever. She brushed strands of hair behind Holly's ear, away from the brunette's face.

"You're so beautiful. I love you." Gail couldn't help the stray tear from falling down her cheek.

Holly was quick to capture and wipe way the single tear from trailing down Gail's cheek. Her heart clenched and any harder she was sure it would break. "I love you too. So much."

Holly closed back the gap and placed a lingering kiss on Gail's lips. It was different than the fierce and passionate ones from moments ago. This one was trying to convey the amount of love Holly felt for Gail. Holly wasn't sure if a kiss could actually convey it, but she would try. And she would keep trying till her very last second with Gail. When they broke apart, Holly pulled Gail with her towards the bed. She lowered the blonde onto the mattress and gently pushed her to the top of the bed. Gail used her hands to move upwards with Holly crawling on top of her.

Gail started to take off her own shirt as Holly undid her jeans. With a helpful lift of her lower body, Holly was able to tug them off and throw it off the bed.

"Take yours off too." And Holly immediately obeyed.

The brunette slid her jeans off and returned to her previous position between the now pale and smooth legs. She slowly ran her right hand from Gail's lower left leg up her thigh, hips, waist, underside of her breast, shoulder, up her neck and finally resting it on her face, thumb caressing slightly flushed cheeks.

Holly had wanted to take Gail fast and hard when she first stepped into the room, but she realized the both of them needed to take it slow, to remember every inch of each others body, to imprint the way Gail's legs quiver and the way Holly's lower abdomen shudders into their minds. The way Gail moans Holly's name every time the brunette thrusts into her just right. The way Holly tightens her grip around platinum blonde hair when tumbling sweetly over the edge. To make love. Gail brought her left hand up to cup the hand currently stroking her cheek tenderly.

"Never stop touching me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it! Leave a review or comment to let me know what you think :)
> 
> P.S. I know nothing about witchcraft or enchanted items. Just added that in for my amusement.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is rated M, so don't read it if you're not into smutty stuff.
> 
> That being said, this is my first attempt at writing smut. Please forgive me if my choice of words aren't that great.
> 
> As usual, mistakes are all mine. Have fun reading :)

**Day 12**

It was almost noon when Holly and Gail woke up from their peaceful slumber. Gail was first to break out of her subconsciousness, mind going through a quick replay of last night's events that went on into the wee hours of the morning. Every move and touch from Holly was deliberate and sensual. Every moan and scream of Gail's name was sweet music to the blonde's ears. It was as if the brunette was trying to depict the adoration and love she felt for Gail, and she no doubt got the message loud and clear. A smile quickly formed on the blonde's face.

Sex with Holly... It was almost indescribable. She could use words such as great, amazing or even the best she's ever had – which was undoubtedly true – but words put the way Holly Stewart touches her to shame. The way Holly run the pads of her fingertips gently around her waist and across her stomach to bring her top up and over her head. The way nimble fingers tease the waistband of her underwear and dip into hot, wet heat to make sure she was ready for Holly. The way Holly's right hand pushes into her, left hand stroking a pale flushed cheek while bringing their foreheads together and brown eyes observing the owner of blue ones, how her breath shudders and how her throat constricts at the sweet intrusion.

And when dominant Holly decides to come out and play, to take her hard and fast, Holly always did it in a way that showed her the amount of love and lust the brunette felt for her. Through passionate kisses, urgent touches and those dirty, dirty words. And after that, Holly would hold her in tanned arms, shower kisses all over her face, whispering sweet nothings and thanking her earnestly for the trust and control she gave over to the brunette, physically and emotionally. Because Holly knew how difficult it was for her to give in like that, to show such vulnerability. And Holly deeply cherished that gift from Gail.

Gail was sure she wouldn't be able to find someone like Holly again. Not just because of the sex, of course, but for everything the brunette was and how much she mattered to Gail. Her heart ached whenever she thought about how they would be 4239.24 kilometers (Yes, she checked) away from each other. Doubts started to creep in. Yesterday, they talked and decided to stay together, do the long distance thing. And that moment, she would do anything to keep Holly in her life even though the brunette might not be there in person, she would take it. But now, with Holly still unconscious next to her and the quietness of the room getting to her, she couldn't help but think about their relationship and what it meant all over again. Gail was almost certain she had never thought about something or someone to this extent ever before, besides her decision to adopt Sophie, of course.

But now that she had agreed to try long distance with Holly, there were more questions popping up in her head. Can two people really be in a relationship when one is so far away from another? She knew she trusted Holly, but with her history with Nick she couldn't help but worry about being in a monogamous relationship with the brunette in another country. Would back and forth texting, phone calls and emails be enough to keep their relationship alive? Being kept up to date and aware of things happening in Holly's life isn't actually the same as living in it with her. What if Holly made tons of new friends and loved her new job so much that her life in California eventually gets in the way of their scheduled Skype calls, that they slowly forgot how each other looked like, or sound like? And how would being in a long distance relationship look like to Sophie and the adoption agency? Will it hinder her chances of getting Sophie? In the back of her mind, Gail knew going into a relationship with so many questions and doubts wasn't a great idea. How could a relationship thrive when all you could think about was an impending break up? Not that Gail wanted that to happen between her and Holly, absolutely not. Gail shook her head to get rid of those thoughts, for now. The list could go on and she didn't want to waste the remaining time left for the two of them.

Gail turned back to face the sleeping brunette who had her back facing Gail. The blonde scooted closer towards the warm tanned body and resumed her big spoon position from earlier. She could feel Holly's body shiver a little at the contact of Gail's chest brushing lightly against her back. Holly sighed sleepily and turned around in Gail's hold to face her, an adorable sleepy grin on her face. Gail smiled and leant forward to kiss the brunette's nose.

"Good morning, beautiful. Actually, it's afternoon." Gail tightened her hold on Holly as she snuggled closer into the embrace.

"Yeah? What time is it?" Holly nuzzled her nose into pale neck, placing light kisses on the skin there.

"A little after twelve."

"Hmm..." Holly's eyes fluttered close, about to drift off into sleep again.

Gail whispered, "Let's go back to sleep."

At Gail's words, Holly was jolted awake. "No no, let's just close our eyes for a few minutes. Then I wanna go for that picnic."

Gail grunted in response but agreed in silence anyway.

* * *

Laying on a blanket near the lake, Gail's eyes were closed with a smile on her face after finishing the last of the strawberries they bought yesterday at the farmers' market. The sun was shining but not bright and hot enough to shed off their jackets. They prepared sandwiches and some fruits for brunch and grabbed some stuff needed for their picnic before heading out of the cabin and onto the pathway that led to the beautiful open space by the lake. Like yesterday, the place belonged to them, not a single soul in sight. Holly pushed some of the things that were in the way and laid down next to Gail who had an arm out ready for the brunette to lie on.

"It's not such a bad idea to come out here, isn't it?" Holly said judging by the satisfied smile on Gail's face.

"Yeah, yeah." Gail rolled her eyes, but she tilted the brunette's head towards her with her other hand and placed a gentle kiss on Holly's lips once, twice before pulling back.

"I'm gonna miss this." Holly sighed.

Gail wasn't sure what Holly was trying to say, would she miss spending time with Gail or miss their time here at the cabin? "Yeah, I don't want to go back to the city." Gail decided to go with her second thought.

Silence settled between them and Gail's thoughts drifted to the brunette again. There wasn't a time when Gail wasn't thinking of her, especially whenever the blonde managed to have some time to herself. She didn't know Holly was the same too. When met with silence, their minds drift and it was always to one another, especially after Holly told Gail about San Francisco.

"Hol?"

"Yes, Gail?"

"Never forget our scheduled Skype dates or phone calls, okay?"

Holly sat up from her position and looked down at Gail with soft eyes. "Of course I won't, babe."

"Promise?" Gail was suddenly embarrassed by her question.

She sounded so small and bashful that the brunette wanted to scoop her up into her arms and hold her protectively. So that's what Holly did. She pulled Gail up and into her lap, arms wrapped around the blonde's waist, thumbs caressing the skin there, past the blonde's jacket and t-shirt. Holly made sure Gail was looking at her before she spoke.

"I promise, Gail. Nothing beats talking to you and I wouldn't miss it for the world."

When there was no response from Gail, Holly squeezed at her waist before continuing. "I love you and I'll miss you every single second that you're not by my side. I'll probably miss you so much that I might print out a pillow with your face and fall asleep and wake up next to it."

Gail broke out in a brilliant smile. "That's just creepy, Holly."

Gail was ready to remind Holly about that offer she made in order to get the blonde out of the cabin for a picnic and some fresh air by the time they returned to the cabin. After last night's passionate, slow and gentle yet earth shattering sex, it was time to kick it up a notch. Even though Gail was more than glad to make love to Holly, taking the brunette rough and fucking her until her mind goes mush was one of Gail's favorite things to do to Holly. To make her brain forget all the medical jargons and scientific facts, to be the one to evoke those incoherent moans that Gail loved to hear so much. One of their most memorable passionate rendezvous happened in the washroom of the Penny. Gail had just finished a five day stakeout with little to no communication with the brunette. When they made plans to meet at the cop bar for some drinks, Gail was ready to pounce on Holly the moment she walked into the room. So she pulled Holly into the ladies room, told her how much she missed her, how much she wanted her and then had her way with Holly without anyone noticing their absence when they returned to the bar later. They may or may not have relived their little reunion the next time they returned to the Penny. And now Gail was ready to do that.

Gail followed Holly into the kitchen where the brunette had to go to put the stuff they brought for the picnic down. Once Holly turned around, the blonde immediately pulled her against her body, attacking her lips with lust filled vigor. Gail thrusted her tongue into Holly's mouth and the brunette moaned into her mouth the instance their tongues touched. They kissed like that for a while before Gail pulled her swollen lips away, breathing erratic. With one quick movement, Gail pulled the brunette's top over her head, tossed it onto the kitchen floor and zoned in on the long tanned neck in front of her. Holly knew Gail wasn't going to take it slow this time.

Holly whimpered as Gail's tongue traveled from the base of the neck up to her jaw, trailing the jawline and flicking at the sensitive skin behind her ear. She pulled away, wanting to feel Gail's skin against her own, removed the blonde's top and threw it on the ground near where Gail threw hers too. Feeling skin on skin, Holly felt her knees weaken, she wasn't sure how long more she could withstand before they gave out. Just like Gail, Holly absolutely loved it when Gail took control. It turned her on and her heart started beating at lightning speed, arousal surging through her veins traveling down between her legs, aching to be touched by the blonde. She clung onto ivory skin and shoulders and Gail moved her hands behind the back of Holly's thighs, lifting the whimpering brunette up onto the counter. Holly parted her thighs and pulled Gail by the shoulders closer so she was standing in between them. Hands, lips and tongues wandered around each other's sensitive spots, earning loud moans and whimpers from one another.

When Gail's hand slowly drifted down firm yet quivering stomach, over the button and zipper of Holly's jeans to cup her heated core, legs instinctively came up to wrap around the blonde's waist tightly keeping her in position. One hand pinching and flicking a nipple and the other against her probably incredibly slick center, Holly gasped tilting her head back in pleasure when Gail rubbed her hand over the material of her jeans to tease her. The legs around Gail tightened and Holly's hips jerked forward, desperate for some kind of friction. Gail smirked. She knew Holly was ready for her.

Gail made quick work of undoing Holly's jeans and shoved them down her legs without pulling it off completely. She was desperate to feel Holly, to make her cry out her name and come undone under her touch. Gail could see the now soaked panties and she gulped hungrily. She always felt overwhelmed by this sight of Holly, a whimpering and erratic breathing mess, begging to be touched by Gail. Her arousal was evidence to Gail, that the brunette wanted her and she always felt emotional and lightheaded whenever Holly was open and ready for her. Without wasting anymore time, Gail flicked the soaked fabric to the side and inserted two fingers into Holly.

"Gail..." The brunette gasped at the sudden entrance of Gail.

The blonde took a moment to feel Holly, feeling the brunette tightening around her fingers before pulling back and thrusting inside again. Repeating this motion and curling up to hit Holly's sweet spot, Gail latched onto a breast and sucked and licked while her left hand hand continued to tease the other.

It didn't take long for Gail to notice the telltale signs of Holly's climax. When she did, Gail began to thrust even faster, not without the curling of her fingers every time. The brunette sneaked a hand between them to circle her bundle of nerves, but Gail's hand that was on one of her breasts stopped her before it reached its destination. The blonde stopped moving altogether, looking into brown eyes silently delivering Holly a message that she was Gail's to touch. Under such intense gaze, Holly immediately got the message and her hands returned to clutch onto Gail's back. Gail moved her left hand further down then to stimulate the hooded bundle of nerves and her right started moving inside of Holly again, resuming the fast pace earlier and leaning forward to give the brunette a hot and messy kiss. The ragged breaths at Gail's ear and the hands squeezing tightly at her shoulder blades stilled for a moment before the brunette's climax hit her in full force, Gail's name came out in screams and Holly clung onto the blonde as she rode out her orgasm. Gail's eyes never left Holly's as she watched the brunette come undone on her fingers. She held Holly close to her as waves of pleasure coursed through her body.

Once Holly recovered, Gail pulled out of the brunette and licked her fingers clean. Holly shuddered at the sight, blue eyes never left brown ones when she put them in her mouth and moaned at the taste of Holly. At that moment Holly thought she might come again just by looking at the woman in front of her.

They fully intended on moving into the bedroom to continue fucking each other senseless, but for some reason they ended up going for round two against the wall, then again with Holly hoisted up on the back of the couch and then lastly laying on the dining table while Gail went down on her before finally making it to the bedroom. Gail was so aroused that she could feel the throbbing and slick heat of her core against her panties. She almost sneaked a hand between her own legs to achieve some sort of relief at some point. But she wanted to feel Holly first, to make her feel amazing. That only Gail Peck could touch her like that, make her writhe in pleasure like no other women possibly could. There would be time to take care of that incessant throbbing between her legs later. It was almost evening when Gail's worship of Holly's body finally came to an end and the brunette was allowed to give back as much as she received from the blonde. They could have a late dinner once Holly was done devouring Gail.

Gail wasn't sure how much information she should provide Oliver with when he asks about their time at the cabin once she returns to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the shorter than usual chapter, but as you can see these two idiots would be having sex all night long and I don't think I have the ability to write so much smut. I wanted to write and publish Gail and Holly's two days at the cabin in one chapter but decided against it. Hope the sex scenes were alright. Might've blushed once or twice while writing it.
> 
> Feel free to leave some feedback!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've always wanted to try writing smut, so I finally did and I'm really glad some of you liked the last chapter.
> 
> Might've dedicated about four paragraphs to Gail's hair in this chapter. I love her hair and I don't care (I do, actually) if its creepy.
> 
> Mistakes are all mine. Rookie Blue, however, is not. Enjoy :)

**Day 13**

"Honey, time to wake up." Holly reached for the offensive object on the nightstand to turn off the blaring of the alarm. Then she sat up on one of her elbows supporting her upper body weight and shook at Gail's bare shoulder gently to try and wake the sleeping blonde. When they were finally satisfied with the amount of mind numbing and pleasurable jolts of orgasms both were giving and receiving, Gail was actually still sane enough to set her alarm on her phone for seven in the morning. Enough time to clean up the place, pack up their belongings and head back into the city for her shift.

An expected grunt came from the messy head of short blonde hair. "I don't wanna wake up."

Holly smiled lazily, sleep still heavy in her eyes and ran a hand through Gail's hair. She loved Gail's long, lustrous platinum blonde hair. It was one of the things that first drew Holly to the police officer. She remembered going home from the lab after that night when they first met and how Holly felt in awe of Gail. The snarky, quick-witted and somehow mysterious blonde intrigued her to no end. At the time Holly wondered how was it possible that only then, that they got to work together. And how she could've missed a beautiful blonde haired officer roaming the halls of the morgue all those times she had worked there. Granted, she only got transferred to work with divisions 15, 21 and 27 ten months ago out of the two years she had been working as one of Toronto's forensic pathologist. Holly's thoughts were invaded by her new friend during her drive back home. How could an officer with such long, beautiful bright blonde hair go undetected and unrecognizable during stakeouts and undercover work? Gail Peck wasn't just some plain Jane or girl next door. Such beauty would probably be hard to forget.

Holly loved it when Gail wore her hair in a braid or a neat ponytail for work, it made the blonde look fierce and professional along with her undeniable attractiveness. But the brunette absolutely loved it when Gail let those beautiful locks loose. Because it meant Gail was off duty and being herself, especially around Holly. She remembered the first time she got to comb her fingers through Gail's trademarked long blonde hair, to tuck stray strands over Gail's ear lovingly. Such a simple act of affection sent Holly's stomach to do backflips. She had been wanting to do that ever since that night when she walked Gail home from their epic night out at the arcade, Gail's hair blowing in the wind effortlessly while she looked across the street, the scene moving in slow motion behind the brunette's bespectacled brown eyes. Holly was mesmerized and it did nothing to help stop her from falling hard for the blonde.

So when Gail drunkenly snipped her gorgeous hair off in the brunette's bathroom that many months ago, Holly felt a tiny tinge of disappointment at the sight of Gail's ponytail in one hand and the pair of scissors in the other. But after helping Gail fix her disastrous attempt at a makeover and the weeks that followed with the blonde sporting her new look, Holly decided that the short hairstyle made Gail look incredibly hot. Especially after sex and in the morning. And also in her uniform, not to mention the leather jacket and boots, too. In summary, Gail could pull off any look.

And now after the short blonde hair grew a little, slight curl at the ends, sideburns long enough to tuck behind her ears and darker roots showing, Holly thought Gail looked incredibly cute like this. She looked younger, especially when accompanied with that playful toothy grin of hers. Holly repeated the motion from earlier and tucked the blonde's hair behind her left ear. _God,_ Holly would miss doing that greatly.

"I know, babe, but you gotta get up if you wanna make it to parade on time." The brunette whispered into Gail's ear before planting a kiss on her cheek.

With another grunt, Gail opened her eyes, blinking several times to adjust to the dimly lit room. She actually wanted to take four days off to stay with Holly until the very last minute at the airport but there was a flu bug going around the station and Chris had magically disappeared off the face of the earth again, so Oliver could only grant her two days instead of four, promising Gail that once everything goes back to normal she could take a break again. Oliver felt slightly guilty and sorry for the blonde, because there was no point taking time off when Holly would be gone. Nevertheless, she thanked Oliver for the cabin and gratefully accepted the two precious days without much complain.

"Ugh, I need coffee. And food." Gail sat up and leant her head against the headboard. This shift was going to be a killer since they only went to bed around three or four in the morning and they still had to drive back into the city. Not that she regretted it though, not one bit. Last night was _amazing._ They fucked, matching each other's thrusts and after that they made love and repeated that throughout the night. Thinking about it had sent tingles down her spine and all the way down to her toes. A wicked grin flashed across her face. Maybe a quickie would be better than caffeine.

Holly saw the look on Gail's face and knew what it meant. "Nope, absolutely not. I know what you're thinking and we don't have time for that." Gail frowned and pouted. Holly was right. The brunette continued, "I'll go make us some coffee and see if I can whip up a little something for breakfast and you go get ready, okay? Then we'll get to work."

* * *

They were slightly ahead as planned, reaching the city with some more time to spare they decided to have some coffee and pastries at a café two streets away from the precinct before Gail had to go in for her shift. Gail was exhausted. She couldn't wait for work to end and to see Holly's face again.

"Hey, will you be home later?" Gail took a sip from her cup of coffee. She closed her eyes and let the hot liquid slid down her throat and warm her stomach.

"After I drop you off at 15 and bring the car back to your apartment, I'll take a cab home. I'll probably be there the whole time, make sure I've got everything packed and ready for my flight tomorrow, unless I have some last minute errands to run. But I'll definitely be home by the time your shift ends." Holly nodded. "You're coming over, right?"

"Of course. I'll be there." _I wouldn't miss it for the world._ "You don't have to take a cab, you can drive the truck home and I'll return it tomorrow. He's not around anyway."

"It's fine, it'll be easier this way and from tomorrow onwards you'll be the proud owner of a Ford sedan."

Right. Holly would be giving Gail her car. The blonde shrugged. "And you'll be back in two years' time to collect it back from me?"

It was Gail's way of asking if the brunette would be coming back after her contract ends. They talked about being in a long distance relationship, but for how long? What if Holly had a choice to extend her contract? Would she do it?

Holly smiled a lopsided grin. "Of course. I don't think I can be apart from my car for too long. I'll even take some time off and fly back to see it. Maybe you could take some pictures and send them to me?"

The doubt in Gail's features immediately disappeared, morphing into a brilliant smile. "I'll see what I can do." The blonde took a big bite of her apple Danish.

They drank their coffees and ate their pastries quickly after the conversation and went back to the truck. Holly drove the short distance to the precinct, pulling over by the road side. Gail unbuckled her seatbelt and turned to look at the brunette.

Holly brought her hand to Gail's face, stroking her cheek affectionately before leaning forward to capture the blonde's lip between hers.

"Be careful and be safe." The hand on Gail's cheek never left, still stroking gently.

Gail nodded.

_Be careful and be safe._ Words that always echoed between them whenever Gail had to leave Holly for work. It could be during the day, before the start of her shift, or after their shared lunch breaks. Holly never failed to utter them every single time. It hit Gail that this would be the last time to hear Holly say it, in person at least.

Gail really didn't want to go to work after spending the last 48 hours or so with the brunette.

"I love you, Gail."

Gail swallowed back her tears trying to remain strong. "I love you too. See you tonight."

After saying their emotional goodbyes, Gail got out of the vehicle and headed straight for the locker room to change into her uniform. If saying goodbye earlier was hard, Gail wondered how would she be able to contain herself tomorrow at the airport. She sighed and opened her locker. _Think happy thoughts._

Once ready for parade, Gail walked out of locker room to see Oliver making his way to the parade room while reading a file. She jogged the few steps needed to catch up to the staff sergeant and called out to him.

"Peck! Good to see you back. How was your time at the cabin?"

"Good, great. Amazing. We had a great time." Even though Gail saw the question coming, she couldn't help but blush as she tried to rid her mind of the images of devouring Holly during the previous two nights. She tried to look busy as she looked down at her pants to locate the keys to the cabin. "Here. Thank you, Oliver. I really really appreciate it."

"Don't mention it, Peck. But you guys didn't leave a mess, right? If the next time I go up there and find the place in a mess I'll put you on front desk duty for two months." Oliver raised an eyebrow at the blonde officer.

Gail quickly shook her head. "No, of course not." Then she smiled at Oliver. "We cleaned up the kitchen and dining table, _several times._ "

"Oh, great, good to know." Oliver was oblivious to Gail's sly grin as officers started to make their way pass them and into the parade room. "Well let's get to work, shall we?"

* * *

When Holly returned the truck and had gone back to the townhouse to put her stuff down, she knew she had one more place to go before leaving Toronto. So she grabbed the car keys off the counter, put her jacket back on and locked the door behind her.

Before heading to her intended destination, Holly stopped by at the neighborhood florist. She got the flowers she always gets and made the relatively short drive to the cemetery.

As always, she visited her parents' grave first before walking deeper into the quiet cemetery. She wasn't sure how long she stood in front of her grandma's grave before her lips went dry and her body itched to move. Holly licked her lips and sighed deeply.

When Holly's parents died, Grandma Caroline took care of her as best as she could at her age. And everyone would agree that she did one hell of a job raising Holly as her own, seeing as how the brunette had grown up being her own woman and a well-respected forensic pathologist. When a police officer knocked on her door one evening to break the news that her son and daughter-in-law had just passed away in an accident, an incredibly quiet and depressed little Holly was at her doorstep. She was overwhelmed at that moment and she thought her heart was about to fail in that instant.

That night, Holly held onto her grandma and cried for hours and Grandma Caroline never let go, rubbing at her back soothingly whispering comforting words into her ear. Holly would be eternally grateful to her grandma. The woman taught her granddaughter to be independent, always told her that home is where the heart is and to always follow her heart no matter what. Holly hoped her grandma was still alive so she could tell her that she misses her and ask if she made the right decision. Even if she didn't, she hoped Grandma Caroline would be here to set her ass straight. She missed her grandma's straight forward approach to things and she could use some of her advice right now.

"Am I doing the right thing, grandma?"

* * *

Much to her dismay, Gail was assigned desk duty. She had hoped that patrolling would take her mind off of tomorrow. But as she was glued to her desk, her mind kept running through different scenarios of the much dreaded goodbye. The longer she thought about it, the more absurd the scenarios got. Would they make a scene? Would she bawl her eyes out, get on her knees and beg Holly not to leave? Probably not.

The long distance relationship they were about to embark on had a permanent spot on Gail's mind. She more she thought about it, the more bleak it looked for the both of them. Gail could find tons of reasons and excuses to find a way out. She could admit that she didn't want to hold Holly back. That the brunette would be better off living a carefree life and working the best job in San Francisco without Gail tying her down back in Toronto. Those were valid reasons, but they were only half truths.

Gail was beginning to think that maybe they shouldn't be together, that this wasn't their time, not yet. The fight at the Penny, Holly seeing someone after, Gail's decision to adopt Sophie and Holly's decision to move to California – so much happened in their own lives. They could hardly catch a break and now they had agreed to be together while being thousands of miles apart? They weren't on the same page when they first became girlfriends after the Ford incident and at that moment Gail was afraid that they still wasn't.

Maybe loving someone truly means that you have to set them free.

Gail absentmindedly grabbed for her mug. She lifted it to her lips to find it empty and frowned, feeling a little lazy to make a new cup of coffee in the break room. Gail sighed and got up, the need of her caffeine fix triumphing her laziness. With almost two more hours of her shift to go, Gail slowly stirred her fresh cup of coffee, mind too far away from 15. Unaware of an intruder, Gail continued to stir her coffee, eyes trained on the ground beneath her boots.

As the white shirt got closer to where Gail was standing, he wasn't sure if he should announce his presence or just let the blonde be. Oliver Shaw cleared his throat, successfully making his presence known as Gail jumped slightly at the sudden noise in the silent break room.

"Wh–what the hell, Sergeant Shaw?! I almost spilled my coffee!"

Oliver continued to pour himself some coffee, back facing Gail. "Well, you should've been more attentive. You're a cop, after all."

Gail simply shrugged although Oliver expected some form of retort from the blonde. Gail stared into her mug, both hands fitted around the warm ceramic.

Oliver sighed internally. He knew what was going on in Gail's head. Holly would be leaving tomorrow and the sadness was obvious in those clear blue eyes. Obvious to people who cared deeply for the blonde, anyway. The staff sergeant had been casting glances over at Gail every once in a while through his glassed wall office. He could see Gail deep in her thoughts almost the whole time during her shift. Oliver knew Gail loved the brunette and her leaving was going to leave a huge gap in Gail's heart. He lifted his hand to look at the watch on his wrist.

"Look, I know you still have some time left before your shift ends, but you're free to go now if you want." Oliver looked at the blonde with kind eyes.

Gail straightened her posture and looked at Oliver for the first time since he walked in. "Really?"

Oliver nodded. "Today was unexpectedly a slow day. Seem like the criminals decided to take the day off. You can leave early, but just for today."

Gail regained the energy she lost since the start of her shift and took a few steps closer to Oliver and enveloped him into a hug. "Thank you, Oliver." It seemed like Gail wasn't saying it enough over the past week.

"No problem, kiddo. Just don't let anyone find out, if not they'll accuse you of being my favorite."

Gail squeezed Oliver one last time before letting go, grinning. "But that's the truth, isn't it?"

Oliver just shrugged and took a sip of his coffee.

"Get out of here, Peck. Before I change my mind."

And so she did. It had just gotten dark by the time she changed out of her uniform and exited the precinct. Gail knew Dov was hanging out in the building somewhere and she called him to send her to Holly's townhouse. He didn't want to go home to an empty apartment with Chris away and Gail spending all her free time with Holly. Of course, Gail had to bribe him by offering to pay for his tab the next time they hung out at the Penny.

They didn't talk much during the ride, only making small talk and letting the radio fill the silence in the car. Gail got out of the station so quickly that she had forgotten to check with Holly if she was home or not. But judging by the lights in the bedroom, the brunette was definitely home. Gail muttered a quick thanks to Dov and shut the vehicle door behind her. She dug out the spare key she had and slid it into the lock. Once she was inside, Gail held the key in her palm, studying it. She should probably return it to Holly. For now, she slid the key into her jeans pocket

The brunette heard the front door opening and then Gail's voice calling out for her. With a surprised look on her face, she quickly closed the book she was reading and glanced at the time on her phone. Gail was two hours early.

Holly walked to the top of the stairs and looked down to locate the blonde. "Gail?"

Gail tilted her head up to smile at the brunette. "Hey."

Holly descended down the stairs quickly and made her way to Gail within seconds. "You're early. Is something wrong?"

Gail shook her head. "It was a really slow day at work and I was bored out of my mind on desk duty. Oliver gave me permission to leave early."

Holly slid her arms around Gail's waist and smiled. "First the days off, the cabin and now cutting you slack at work? You must be his favorite."

"I know, right? Next he'll get the new rookie to buy me food during lunch breaks."

Holly smiled and shook her head. "Well, I'm glad that you're here early. I missed you." She leant forward closer, brushing her nose against Gail's before gently taking the blonde's top lip between her own.

Gail moaned at the contact. "Mmm. I missed you too. Everything here in order?" She pulled away and looked around the house.

"Yeah, everything's set." Holly decided not to rent out the place. She would be back in two years' time and when she comes back to visit she would have a place to stay.

"About that," Gail took out the key that was in her right pocket. "Here, you should have this back."

Holly shook her head. "I want you to keep it."

Gail had a mix of confusion and surprise look on her face. "What for?"

"Well, since I won't be renting it out, maybe you could hold onto to it for me? Till I get back?" Holly wasn't sure if that was too much to ask of Gail, but the blonde was the only one she trusted the most.

"Okay." Gail nodded.

"Yeah?"

"Sure, I mean, I can check up on the place from time to time and maybe even come over and hangout for a bit. That's if you wouldn't mind, of course."

Holly smiled sweetly at Gail. "I don't mind." Then she closed the gap between them again for another kiss. "Thank you, Gail. You didn't have to do this."

"But I want to."

"How about we order in, watch some TV and then make out like a couple of teenagers?"

Gail snickered, "I don't plan on just making out with you, Hol. And I'm not that hungry anyways." then she pulled Holly flushed against her body, expression serious and genuine. "I just want you." Hands traveled from shoulder blades down to Holly's lower back and coming around her abdomen, slowly pushing the fabric of Holly's t-shirt upwards. Gail could feel the brunette's muscles shiver slightly under her fingertips as cold air meets bare skin.

Holly gulped at the sudden shift of intense energy around them. "Well then what are you waiting for?" She could see the blonde's blue eyes a few shades darker, filled with lust, desire, love and everything she felt for the brunette. "Take me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Leave a comment or review to let me know if you liked it! Feedback always welcome :)
> 
> One more day left for Holly and Gail!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reviews, favs and follows.
> 
> Sorry for not making it clear in my previous post, there will be another chapter to tie everything up (hopefully), this is just their last day together, not the final chapter.
> 
> Mistakes are mine, which I'm sure there are plenty.

**Day 14**

They laid side by side on the bed, looking into each other's eyes, fingers wandering around the other's body tracing every dip and curve of soft smooth skin. The once cozy bedroom was bare, shelves that were home to dozens of books stood empty in the corner of the room. The framed photos of close friends and family and happy memories that used to be on top of the clothes drawer were boxed away, already on its way to its destination. The rather large walk in closet that was filled with clothes and shoes that Gail sometimes borrowed whenever she stayed over and secretly loved because it smelt of the brunette and felt really comfortable were gone too. There was almost no trace of Holly's existence in the bedroom and it would've been devastating if the brunette wasn't there in bed naked next to Gail.

The blonde was trying her best not to turn around and look away from Holly to take note of the time on her watch that was on the bedside table. She didn't want to panic at how much time was left. She wanted to commit every part of the brunette to memory, as if she hadn't done it already.

So Holly let her. And when pale hands started to shake and tremble against her tan skin, she would bring them up against her lips and gently brush them over the knuckles of the shuddering blonde, brown eyes never leaving glossy blue ones. When those hands and unsteady breathing calmed down, Holly would bring the pale fingers back to where they were minutes ago and let them continue on their journey.

What Holly didn't know, was this would be the last time that they would be in the same bed together, holding and touching each other, that they probably won't see each other for the next two years. That was if Holly would still be coming back in two years' time. Gail knew she probably should let Holly in on her decision to end their relationship, but she just wanted to hold onto to this moment forever, to have something to remember rather than swinging a sledgehammer into the blissful walls around them.

Gail knew she shouldn't have come to this conclusion by herself, to take the fate of their relationship into her own hands. But deep down she knew this would be the best chance for them to be together, to emerge on the other side stronger for each other, at least that was what she psyched herself up to believe in. She truly believes that when the time comes, when they're both ready for each other, they would know. And she knew Holly well enough to know that she would understand all of this. Never in her life had she felt like she was truly wanted like the way Holly wanted her and for the first time she knew exactly where she belonged to, whom she belonged to. This was why she felt secure and confident enough to know that Holly's was hers and vice versa. Gail thought she would be feeling devastated or heartbroken at her decision, but she doesn't. On the contrary, she felt lighter. Like all the thinking and pondering she had done over the past two weeks have been leading up to this conclusion. And now she just had to find the right time to tell Holly.

Both women were lost in their own world for what seemed like an eternity. Neither wanted to close their eyes, to succumb to sleep, not that it was coming to them easily. Holly could sleep once she was on the plane and Gail could sleep once she drops the brunette off at the airport and return to her apartment. Sleep would have to wait.

Gail truly wanted to break the silence, to make conversation with Holly, to hear the woman she loves talk about anything and everything. To hear her voice closely against her ear, against her cheek, against her mouth, her lips, her everywhere. To listen to those three words that never fails make her heart skip a beat. Because listening to such lovely voice over electronic devices wouldn't be the same as listening to it in person. Gail wouldn't be able to feel the vibrations of Holly's hum, her breathy laughter and how the brunette's lips move against her skin. But she couldn't trust herself. She was afraid that the moment she opens her mouth, her throat would constrict and loud sobs would overtake the peaceful quietness of the room. That would be a hundred times worse than the comfortable silence they were currently in. But it was Holly who spoke first.

"What time is it?"

Gail reluctantly turned around to look at her watch, hands never leaving the brunette's body. "A little after two." She was glad that her words managed to come out steadily.

A frown appeared on Holly's face. Gail knew what she was thinking. They don't have much time left, they would be leaving for the airport in a few hours. The blonde could see the slight panic behind brown eyes however subtle it might be. She decided to try and make things lighter in the room.

"Why, you've got somewhere else to be?" Gail poke at Holly's sensitive spot at her side, causing the brunette to squirm a little. Then the frown got even deeper and Gail's stomach was starting to sink.

"That's not funny, Gail."

Gail sighed, "I know. I just don't want us to spend the rest of our time moping and feeling depressed." then she leant forward to kiss Holly softly on the lips, only pulling away when she felt the brunette's lips curve up into a smile.

_God,_ that lopsided grin. That smirk. Gail would miss it to death. Her own lips involuntarily formed a smile too. She brought her hand that was resting on Holly's waist up to her lips, thumb brushing against those soft lips. Gail's heart swelled in her chest for the millionth time since she arrived at the house hours before. She wondered why it hadn't exploded for the love she felt for the brunette.

"I love you." The blonde whispered into the empty room, the palpable force behind those words echoing off the walls and into Holly's ears. The brunette's eyes began to water.

"I love you too."

Determined not to let their last few moments together to turn into a sob fest, Holly blinked back the tears and moved swiftly on top of the blonde, dark brown hair tickling pale bare chest. Gail's hands rested at the small of Holly's back before slowly running her fingers up and down the brunette's spine. Holly stayed in her position, face inches away from Gail's, Gail's fingers tracing her spine and their bodies pressed flushed against each other. They reveled in the skin on skin sensation for a few minutes before Holly started to venture down the body beneath her, trailing kisses and flicks of her tongue as she traveled to her desired destination down south. Hands softly gripped onto both breasts, kneading them as her mouth left a hot trail from Gail's belly button to her wet and hot center. Holly hummed in response to Gail's approving moans and felt hands on her head urging her towards the source of the blonde's arousal. She planted tiny and soft kisses on Gail's wet lips before sticking her tongue out to ravage Gail, to devour her until the blonde cries out her name and then do it over and over again.

* * *

The ride was quiet as predicted, Holly's hand never leaving Gail's as the blonde drove them to the airport. She could see from the frown on Gail's face and the silent storm brewing behind her eyes that she was deep in her thoughts, so Holly let her have her moment before they arrive at the airport.

The usually long journey seemed shorter this time and Holly didn't want it to end. She wanted to ask Gail to take the nearest highway exit and drive them both home. When Gail parked the car into the lot, both women just sat in their seats and looked out of the windscreen, neither wanting to make a move. Gail thought about using this moment to tell Holly about the break up, but she could see that the brunette wasn't in the right state of mind. Gail needed her to be calm and collected for this. Holly could hear her heart beating loudly in her ears and she was starting to fidget in her seat. The longer the silence the more anxious Holly felt. _Oh god oh god. Maybe this is a bad idea._

"Maybe we should just start the car and go back home." Holly didn't realize she was speaking her thoughts out loud and the words felt bitter on her tongue.

Gail sighed and turned her body to face the brunette. She pulled Holly's hand into her lap and held it in her own two hands. "Hol, look at me."

At Gail's voice, Holly whipped her head up towards the blonde. "Huh?"

Gail rubbed her thumbs soothingly over the back of Holly's hand. "Do you trust me?"

"Yes of course I trust you." Holly nodded and couldn't help at the slight incredulous tone that accompanied her words. She trusted Gail with all her heart.

"So, believe me when I say that you're going to do great in San Francisco."

"But... but-"

"No buts." Gail brought her hand up to Holly's chest, resting there. "I may not be there next to you, but I'll always be there for you. In here." She gently tapped on the soft skin." I know you can do this. So let's do this, okay?"

Holly took a deep breath and exhaled, a small and nervous smile appeared on her face. "Okay."

Gail then let go of Holly and got out, rounding the front of the car to get to Holly's side. She opened the door and pulled Holly out on her feet. Gail's hands rested on the brunette's waist and pulled her in as close as possible and Holly wrapped her arms around the blonde's neck. They both leant in for a slow and deep kiss, not caring that they were in the public. When they finally pulled away, Gail walked to the trunk of the car to unload Holly's luggage. Holly immediately joined her and took one of the two bags in one hand and the other slipped into Gail's. She held onto Gail tightly as they got nearer to the entrance of the airport.

Gail stood at the side and waited for Holly to check in her luggage. When she saw the brunette making her way back to her, the lightness she felt from earlier replaced with an ache in her chest. In about 10 minutes or so, the love of her life would be getting on a plane to fly thousands of miles away from her. She would be gone from her arms, no longer hers to hold. When Holly stopped right in front of her, she knew this was the time. It was now or never.

So she placed both of her hands on Holly's cheeks, keeping her in place. She let out a shaky breath and looked into those brown eyes she loved so much. Holly's own hands wrapped around her waist.

"Hol, I love you."

"I love you too, Gail." Holly smiled her lopsided grin despite of the situation. She loved Gail with all her heart and being in another country for two years wasn't going to change that fact.

"That is why I think we should break up."

Holly gasped and she was certain her heart stopped for a few seconds as her stomach sunk onto the ground. She was not expecting this and it hit her like a ton of bricks. Tears started to fall freely down her cheeks.

"Wh...what?"

Gail was quick to wipe them away. She knew it would be hard to do this, but she underestimated just how fucking hard it was at the moment and it looked like Holly's heart had been split open.

"I think... I think this is the right thing to do, Hol. For the both of us." Gail sniffled, refused to let her own tears win.

"Don't... don't do this."

"We have to. We _need_ to."

"Why?" Holly was in shock.

"Because you should be living your life in San Francisco without me tying you down over here."

"But... But you _are_ my life, Gail!"

Gail broke at Holly's words. It really was much harder than she thought this would be. A soft sob escaped from her lips but she managed to swallow down the next and blew out yet another shaky breath.

"And you're mine, Hol. That is not going to change even though you'll be so far away from me." She wiped away Holly's tears again, ignoring her own. "But we owe it to our future selves to do this. Because I know this is going to bring us back, strong and better than ever."

When there was no response from the now sobbing brunette, Gail continued. "I want us to end it right here, on good terms and still very much in love, rather than drifting apart from each other within the next two years and end up breaking up on the phone."

When there was still no response, Gail tried again. "You said you trust me, right?"

The brunette nodded.

"Then trust me when I say we belong together, even though the timing isn't right. We're going to use this time apart to work on ourselves. And there _will_ be a time when we'll finally be together." Gail pulled Holly even closer by the sleeves of her cardigan. She made sure the brunette was looking at her before continuing. No matter how soppy the words are, they are undeniably true and she had to get them out. "Because against all odds, we're meant to be. And deep down I know you know that what I'm saying is true."

Gail gave Holly some time to recompose herself. She wiped away her tears and waited for the sobbing to stop. When she believed she was calmed enough to talk, Holly looked up at Gail, who was looking at her with so much love.

The woman before her, the woman she met in the woods was not the woman standing in front of her. Gail Peck was no longer the skittish cat waiting for something to happen and then take that opportunity to make her escape. Gail Peck had evolved into such a mature and understanding person, a person that Holly had always known was within Gail, she just had to search long and hard for it.

She knew Gail was right. This relationship was going to take on toll on them, whether they wanted to admit it or not. Although they had agreed to stay together, a part of Holly feared that one day they might end up resenting each other and their relationship would end in flames. It wasn't that Holly didn't have faith in the both of them, but the scientist in her just couldn't ignore the facts that long distance relationships have a high probability of ending badly. And she wanted the last of their memories as a couple to be in love and happy together.

Now that Gail was actually breaking up with her for their own good, she still couldn't handle the heartbreak. But she knew this wasn't easy for the blonde either.

Holly nodded her head. "You're right." Then she continued. "Maybe this isn't our time yet."

Gail sighed in relief, hands rubbing up and down Holly's arms comfortingly. "And this isn't goodbye."

"This isn't goodbye." Holly echoed Gail's words. Maybe saying it again and again would help to make herself feel better.

Holly could feel tears welling up her eyes and blurring her vision again. The sob that came out of her mouth was like a million stabs into Gail's heart.

"I love you. So _so_ much." Holly managed to say between tears.

"I know. I love you so much, too. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me." And hopefully soon Sophie would be, too.

Gail leant forward and kissed Holly's forehead, eyelids, nose, cheeks and finally her lips. She could feel Holly's lips quiver and taste the saltiness of her tears. They must be looking like a mess in the middle of the airport, but Gail couldn't care less.

It was time to leave, but Holly held onto Gail's leather jacket tightly, refusing to let go.

"Text me when you land?"

Holly nodded. "I'll come back for you. For _us_."

Gail smiled through her tears, leaning in to kiss Holly again. "I know you will. And I'll be here."

When Holly's grip on Gail's jacket started to loosen and the brunette started to pull away, Gail felt her heart dropped and she wished for time to stop so she could hold Holly in her arms a second longer. She would do anything to drag on this moment longer.

Gail held onto Holly's hand tightly, even though the brunette was walking away from her. "This isn't goodbye, okay, Hol?"

Holly squeezed her hand in return and nodded before slipping out of Gail's grasp. "This isn't goodbye."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I had a hard time writing it because I love Golly and it's hard to write heartbreaking stuff for them. I may or may not have tears in my eyes after finishing this.
> 
> Please leave me a comment or review to let me know your thoughts, I would love to hear them.
> 
> One last chapter for 14 Days. Stay tuned.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More author's note below, but first things first, this is the longest thing I've ever written in my life and I've gone through it so many times that it was beginning to sound funny in my head. Secondly, I'm not great at writing police stuff, so please bear with any loopholes or mistakes. Lastly, I hope you enjoy.
> 
> As usual, errors are mine.

**10 months later**

Gail exited the lift and walked up to her apartment door. She dug her keys out of her bag, slid it into the lock and walked through the front door into the dark hallway. She stopped between the entrance to the kitchen area and the living room to look around her cold and empty home. Everything seemed so foreign to her. Gail had gotten this place nine months ago but she barely lived in it for more than a month.

For the past eight months or so, Gail had gone undercover for a major case that was supposed to last for six months. A few weeks after Holly left for San Francisco, Gail studied hard for her detective rotation exams and slayed the other applicants, successfully getting the promotion. Everyone at 15 witnessed the hard work Gail had put in and they were all incredibly happy for her. During her second week as a rookie detective, Gail and Traci were tasked to be in charge of solving a string of drug overdose cases – all of them were women – to find out where the supply was coming from and to bring them in. Traci would bring Gail along to question civilians who lived in the vicinity of where all those women died, but unsurprisingly no one dared to cough up anything useful. After two weeks of coming up empty, they hit a dead end.

Then one day, a woman came into 15 demanding she talk to someone about the O.D. cases. She was friends with one of the victims and she had provided the name of the supplier to the detectives. Traci and Gail thought they had hit the jackpot.

They managed to catch the guy who ran the mini drug ring around the vicinity of where all those women overdosed. But as a plea for a lighter sentence, he offered to give the name of the main supplier, a man named Randy Moreno. The name immediately rang a bell in Traci's head. Moreno was _the_ man responsible for operating the major drug ring in Ontario. The department saw this as an opportunity to task the city's finest to go under for this major case that would make the Toronto Police Service look good in the press and to the citizens. As Traci and Gail were the ones in charge of the case initially, they got work with the higher ups to bring together a task force for this high profile operation.

Work was progressing well and Elaine had never been so proud of her daughter. If you'd ask anyone, Gail would rather go back to making bad career choices than to have her mother parade her around like a prized animal. And even though that was true, a part of Gail liked that her mother was finally paying attention and recognizing the great work that her daughter was doing, however long overdue it was.

Gail knew breaking up with Holly was the right thing to do. But that doesn't mean it hurt any less. The first week after Holly's departure, Gail cried herself to sleep and wallow in sadness when nobody was around her. The second week, Gail would spend time on the treadmill at 15's gym after her shifts so by the time her head hits the pillow, she would be feeling too tired to crumble and give in to the tears. When the third week came, it was time to study for the detective rotation exam and Gail welcomed it with open arms. It was probably the first time she got so excited over exams. The first two months after Holly left, they kept in contact, sending text messages back and forth and squeezing in phone calls whenever Gail had a break or time off from work. They talked about scheduling a Skype date but that day never came. From what Gail had heard from the brunette, work was great and her co-workers were extremely kind and welcoming. Holly was enjoying her time in San Francisco and Gail truly felt happy for her.

Even with a hectic work schedule, Gail made sure she had time to make it to her weekly visits with Sophie. Gail decided not to tell Sophie about the adoption only until she could be a hundred percent certain that Sophie was going to be her daughter. She also decided to use this tactic on her parents and friends, in case things doesn't go well for the blonde, but she was praying that wouldn't happen. She loved Sophie and it would break her heart if the adoption goes south. Gail wasn't sure if she could handle two heartbreaks within such a short period of time. She was still healing from the first one, even though Gail was the one who initiated the breakup.

The only people except for Holly who knew about Gail's decision to adopt Sophie were Steve, Traci and Oliver. Traci only found out because Steve had accidentally spilled the beans to her and Gail would never forget the look on Traci's face when the brunette came stomping into the break room looking for Gail and an explanation. Part of Gail was glad that Traci knew about it. She respects Traci and was familiar with her friend's work and home situation, how she balanced being a police officer and a divorced mother of one. Understandably, Traci wasn't fond of the idea at first, doubting Gail's capability to be an 8-year-old girl's mother. As a mother and a detective herself, Traci explained to Gail how extremely difficult it would be for the blonde to take care of a kid and manage a time consuming job. Not to mention dangerous too. And Traci had Dex too. But Gail was adamant about it and Traci understood why her friend had to do this. She saw it in Gail's eyes, the way she lit up when she talked about Sophie. And it was obvious to everyone just how much Gail had grown over the year. Especially after meeting Holly. It was not going to be easy, but Traci was confident that Gail was going to be an amazing mother. At the end of the day, Traci would support her friend no matter what. Traci broke out in laughter after recalling that one time back during their rookie years, when she was already pitying Gail's future children. She was certain Gail was going to be a terrible mother, but she couldn't be more wrong now. Any kid would be lucky to be loved by Gail. Steve, of course, faced the wrath of his sister and was forced to pay a week tab for Gail and friends at the penny as part of his punishment.

The adoption process was going along well and Gail was starting to look for a bigger place for the two of them. Apart from going through a breakup, Gail would consider that things were going well for her.

That was before the adoption agency's social worker met with Gail to deliver the bad news.

A couple had taken interest in adopting Sophie and Gail's chances were beginning to become very slim. The social worker may not have said it in the exact words, but comparing a loving couple with a great home to Gail, a single woman who's working a dangerous job, the odds were probably not in Gail's favor. Gail knew she shouldn't get her hopes up, to be over-confident that one day she would be holding Sophie's hand, leading her into their new home. But to have that become reality and smack it right in her face, Gail was sure her already broken heart was about to be crushed into even finer pieces, almost into dust. Breaking up with Holly was hard, but losing Sophie was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Gail knew it was probably best for Sophie. It doesn't mean that being adopted by someone else Gail would be banned from seeing Sophie. But it just wasn't going to be the same, not being able to call Sophie her own. Gail was no longer Sophie's best chance.

After visiting Sophie at the home that day, Gail's next stop was the Penny. She wasn't planning on getting shitfaced, but alcohol was the only way she knew how to numb her feelings. Gail doesn't remember that night clearly. She remembered perching herself up onto a barstool and ordering one drink after another. She doesn't remember ignoring her friend's attempts at asking about her wellbeing. She doesn't remember asking them to fuck off. She doesn't remember Steve dragging her drunk ass back to his place after almost drinking the bar dry. She doesn't remember her brother's heartbroken face, worrying about his baby sister. Steve contemplated sending Gail to the hospital for alcohol poisoning, but he had seen worse.

When Gail woke up the next day in Steve's bed, the pain she felt in her chest overruled the vicious hangover she was suffering from. With no Holly, no Sophie and no alcohol to help dull the pain, Gail broke down in loud gut-wrenching sobs, feeling as if she had absolutely nothing else to lose. In the living on the couch, Steve was immediately woken up his sister's crying and was up and running towards the bedroom in a second. He froze as he reaches the door to his room, the sight in front of him absolutely heartbreaking. For a moment, Steve wasn't sure what he should do. Pecks don't comfort each other with loving and reassuring words. They don't lend you a shoulder to cry on. But Steve knew this time Gail needed it. This wasn't a break up with her first boyfriend. It wasn't the time Gail got reprimanded by their mother for something she didn't do. This was the breakdown of someone who had been trying to put up a front, to hold it together for the people around her. It was a cry for help, for someone to make her whole again. So rather than being rooted to the ground, Steve moved his feet toward Gail. Steve was no Holly, but he couldn't just stand there and watch his dear sister crumble into a million pieces. He put his warm and inviting arms around the shaking blonde and let her cry until she couldn't anymore.

Saying goodbye to Holly almost wrecked her, but Gail focused her time and energy on getting detective rotation and working hard at it. And when it was time to appoint someone for the undercover job, Gail took this as an opportunity to distract her from whatever that had happened in her life within those few months. Maybe this could be the thing to stop her from missing Holly and thinking about the adoption. And to capture a criminal, of course.

The task force was looking for a female uniform cop for the job, but Gail fought hard for it, stating that no one else knew the case better than her and Traci and she was perfectly fine with going under for several months. The people close to Gail knew exactly why she wanted this, cops around 15 thought she was doing this because she's a Peck and her mother was just glad that Gail was showing some drive and taking initiative to climb up the police force ladder. If this case goes well, Gail was going to put herself and the Peck name under the limelight. Gail's enthusiasm and strong will to get chosen for the undercover work had persuaded everyone involved in the operation.

Gail only had 12 hours to get prepped and set her personal affairs in order. She thought about sending Holly a text, or even an email to let her know that she was going to be unreachable for the next few months because of the case, but decided against it. She knew the brunette would freak and Gail needed to be focused and clear headed going into this thing. She also didn't want Holly to worry.

This being a high profile case and important operation and all, Gail knew it would be extremely dangerous. She would be the one responsible for the success of the case, everything was weighing on her shoulders but instead of feeling stressed out about it, Gail was feeling even more determined to bring down Randy Moreno. It was going to be a one man show. Once Gail stripped away her identity and take on another for her role as a new and up and coming drug dealer, she would be all on her own. No back up, no contact with her colleagues unless necessary. It was do or die. But Gail wasn't planning on dying. The assignment might be helping to take her mind off Holly and Sophie for the next few months, that doesn't mean she didn't want to take down Moreno and get home safe and sound as quickly as possible.

The operation went on longer than the expected timeframe. Gail could almost see the finish line, ready to call in at 15 for the big arrest when she found out that other than dealing with drugs, Moreno had another business in human trafficking and prostitution. She had found out by coincidence. One night after Moreno's club closed, Gail stopped by to hand him the profit she earned from her recent drug dealings. She was passing by one of the VIP rooms to go to the restroom when she'd heard a loud cry from the room. Police instincts took over, she reached for her unlicensed gun and entered the unlocked room with the firearm raised in her hands. Gail was appalled by what she saw. A man in only a shirt was hovering on top of a young girl, covered in bruises clad in bra and panties. The man saw Gail pointing a gun at his direction and yelled at her, demanding to know who the fuck she was and wanting to talk to Moreno.

Moreno and his men heard the commotion and quickly made their way to the VIP room. He saw Gail pointing her gun at him, ordered her to back off and told her that Mr. Stevens was one of his regulars. After reassuring Mr. Stevens that this was just a misunderstanding, Moreno led Gail out of the room, closed the door and sat her down at the bar for a drink. Gail's eyes kept wandering over to the room, her heart clenched at every time she hears the girl's cries. Moreno explained to her that it was a side job to earn extra cash, nothing as big as the drug ring he was running. After months of gaining Moreno's trust, he offered Gail a role in his part time job, to move the 'goods' around when needed and in return she would be paid generously. Gail immediately agreed, because turning Moreno down might gain mistrust and be considered as disloyal. As if the hatred she felt for Moreno wasn't great enough. Forced prostitution of innocent women? Gail would've shot him in the head if she had the chance.

The new development in the case called for an urgent meeting at a safe house. She met with Traci and the others in charge of the operation and told them about what she saw and Moreno's offer. They agreed that this might take longer than planned because Gail had to find out more about the prostitution business Moreno was running along with the drug ring. Maybe she could put Moreno away for an even longer time.

Gail was beginning to feel the stress creeping up on her. She was starting to doubt her abilities to take down Moreno and his whole operation. It wasn't easy to play the role of a drug dealer, to hand someone something so potent and deadly, to think this might be the last fix that would end someone's life. It wasn't easy to look another way as old perverted men forced themselves onto young helpless women. It wasn't as easy as she thought it would, to compartmentalize.

But she powered through, because she promised Holly to be careful and be safe. To wait for Holly to come home. And in the back of her head, to not disappoint Elaine Peck. Gail could do this. Once she was done, she would go back to her own bed and sleep for a month. Close to the eighth month, Gail finally had enough dirt to bring Moreno and the rest of his crew down for drugs and human trafficking. She called in for an arrest, prayed hard for her own safety and waited until show time.

The arrest went down without a hitch, except for a couple of cuts and bruises on Gail while she tried to stop one of Moreno's men from escaping. After letting the paramedics look over her wounds and assuring Traci that she was perfectly fine, the detective drove Gail back to the precinct for a debrief that went on for hours, and after that her parents appeared right in the middle of 15 to congratulate Gail for the successful arrest of Randy Moreno. Gail was ready to get back to her apartment to rest, but her mother just won't stop squeezing and shaking her daughter in excitement. Elaine exclaimed that the Peck name would no doubt be in the front page of tomorrow's newspaper, loud enough for the whole station to hear. Gail rolled her eyes and just waited patiently for her parents to get back to work. Steve also dropped by to see her, too. She'd missed her big brother the whole time undercover. It was great to see his bright smile after so long, and the pride he felt for his sister. Gail had to admit, she felt a bit like a rockstar with everybody clapping and congratulating her. Victory was sweet as honey. It was only sweet for a few minutes before it was too much for Gail to handle.

When Bill and Elaine were finally gone – not without making Gail promise to come home for a family reunion dinner the next day – and the congratulations around 15 stopped, Oliver ordered Gail to go back home for some well-deserved rest. Traci offered to drive her home and Gail kindly accepted. Traci used this chance to talk to Gail privately as a friend for the first time in months.

_Traci pulled over in the parking lot and Gail thanked for her the ride before opening the door to get out of the car._

_"Gail, wait." Traci stopped the blonde, who was about to pull the handle of the door._

_She looked over at her friend. "Yeah?"_

_"You did good, Gail. Truly amazing work."_

_Gail offered a shy smile and a small thanks. "Thanks, Trace."_

_"We're all so proud of you. Holly would be proud of you, too."_

_A lump formed in Gail's throat at the sound of Holly's name. It had been too long since she'd heard anyone say this name out loud. The blonde nodded her head at Traci's words._

_"I know you'll want to hear this from Steve, but he's been looking out for Sophie like you asked him to and she's doing really great with her new parents. She's having a great time at school and Nicole and Eric are taking good care of her."_

_"That's good to hear. I'm glad."_

_Even if Gail couldn't be the one to give Sophie the happiness she deserves, she was glad that the little girl was getting it from somewhere else, from people who love her._

_"And Gail, make sure to check your emails when you get home."_

Gail knew exactly what Traci was talking about. Holly had reached out to her when she couldn't get a hold of the blonde.

Gail put her stuff down by the wall near the door and walked into the kitchen to look for something to drink. She was going to just get a glass of water but tried her luck to find anything that was still drinkable in the fridge anyway. She thanked her lucky stars when she saw the six pack sitting in the middle of the empty fridge. She must've bought it the last time she went grocery shopping, which was when she first moved into the apartment.

Gail opened the can of beer and took big gulps from it before setting it on the counter. She walked to her bedroom to look for her laptop that was sitting on the desk in front of the bed. There was a thin layer of dust on it, but Gail just wiped it off and took it with her back outside. She grabbed her beer and laptop and took the few steps needed to get across to the sofa in the living room. Her furniture was covered with sheets of plastic so it wouldn't get dusty by the time she comes home. She left in such a hurry that she had told Steve do it for her, saying she wouldn't want to have to come home and spring clean her place right after the case closed.

Pulling the sheet of plastic off of her couch, Gail plopped down on it and switched on her laptop. A part of her was excited to read the emails but the other part felt nervous about what was in those emails. Would Holly be pissed about Gail going undercover for months without telling her? She was afraid to find out. Fingers trembling slightly with anticipation and a hint of fear, Gail used the track pad to move the cursor over to the inbox button and double clicked it. She was greeted by tons of emails from advertisements to junk mail and most importantly, her heart was beating much faster as her eyes caught sight of a bunch of emails from Holly Stewart.

Gail decided to start from the earliest ones and work her way back up to the top of the inbox, ignoring the others which she would delete later. She scrolled until she found the first email from Holly, took a deep calming breath and clicked on it.

_##########_

_Gail,_

_I don't know why you're not responding to my messages or answering my phone calls, I hope I would be able to reach you here, maybe you lost your phone or something? Please let me know if you're okay._

_Love,_

_Holly_

_##########  
_

_Gail,_

_It's been two weeks since I last heard from you and I'm getting worried. Maybe you're busy on a case, but it hasn't stopped us from talking before, even if it's just for a minute. At the risk of sounding clingy, I really hope you're okay and please call me back before I call the police._

_Now that I think of it, you're the police. But, you know what I mean. So please, call me, okay? I miss you._

_Love,_

_Holly_

_##########_

_Gail,_

_I wished you would've told me about going undercover. I was worried sick about you! Well, I'm still worried, but I was so scared when I didn't know where you were for the past couple of weeks. I finally called Traci to make sure that you're still alive and thankfully, you still are!_

_Traci told me about the adoption. I'm truly sorry, Gail. I understand why the sudden disappearance, I really do. But I just wish you could've told me about it so that I could be there for you._

_6 months. You'll be gone for 6 months and I'll be in constant worry for your safety. You know I'm not a religious person, but every night since I've learnt about you going undercover I've been praying to whichever gods who are willing to listen. To pray for your safe return._

_You're doing this for the people and I'm so proud of you. You'll do amazing, I know it. You're a hero, Gail. Don't ever forget that._

_I don't even know why I'm writing this when you can't even see it. But I miss you. So much. I miss talking to you. I love my co-workers and friends here but they're not you. I want to hear your voice and your snarky comments and your life in Toronto. But I can't now, not with you risking your life right at this moment. You may get hurt right now and I wouldn't even know about it. Not yet, anyway._

_So please, as always, be careful and be safe._

_And I'll be waiting for you, even though I'm thousands of miles away._

_Love,_

_Holly_

_##########_

_Gail,_

_I've decided to make this a thing, writing to you. Like this when you're home you can read about my life here in San Francisco._

_When I called Traci the other day, I told her to inform me when you're finally back. Or if something happened to you, so I wouldn't be left out of the loop. So far so good, right? No news is good news, I suppose._

_I realized that running can help me familiarize myself around the city. Geez, remember when I told you about me getting lost after every turn? Well, I'm starting to get a hang of it. I even gave a tourist directions to the museum! Hopefully I was right for his sake._

_Oh, Rachel would be coming down here next week for a conference, so I'll be meeting her for dinner. I can't wait to see her! Man, I really miss my friends. However snobbish or egoistic some of them may be sometimes._

_I wish you could visit. Maybe you should, once you're done with the case? We could make a weekend out of it! I'll bring you to the local bar right down the street and have dinner at one of my favorite restaurants. You're going to love it here._

_Work has been great, too. I shall not bore you with the nerd talk, but we've had a breakthrough at the lab and we're working hard to turn the impossible into something concrete and real. Something to help people around the world._

_I'll probably be super busy for the weeks to come, might not even leave the lab unless I need to._

_No matter how busy I'm going to be, I'll always pray for you to be safe at the end of the day._

_Be careful and be safe, Gail._

_Love,_

_Holly_

_##########_

_Gail,_

_It's been too long since the last time I wrote to you. Work's been crazy, but I still think of you every single day. I hope you're doing well undercover. I just checked, can you believe it's been 2 months since my last email? I swear I promised to write as frequently as I can but I've just been swamp with work._

_Is it wrong to say that I'm glad we broke up? Because there is no way our relationship would survive with me practically living in the lab even if you weren't undercover. I truly underestimated how busy I would be getting after the last email I sent you. If there was a shower here in the building, I would've officially moved in from my apartment._

_After our small breakthrough, we proceeded to phase 2 of our research and hit a dead end shortly after. But my boss refuses to accept defeat, so do we, and now we're working twice as hard as we used to. It's tiring, of course, but the end result would be totally worth it. Obviously my boss isn't a monster. Outside of work, Patrick's a really kind man, we get along really well and he has a lovely wife too. He just gave us some time off to recharge our batteries and regroup._

_I've just came home from hanging out with Sara and Matt. We decided to hit the bar after work today as a way to kick start our long break. You'd love Matt. He's feisty and snarky like you. And also a huge goofball._

_He and his husband, Dave, have been showing me around the city especially the gay neighborhoods and hangout places. They're really nice people. Super outgoing, sporty and really great cooks too. I cannot tell you how many times I've been over at their place for dinner. Dave makes a mean tiramisu, he's like the dessert whisperer. Dave's a cop too and when I told them about you, Matt said they're like the male version of us, one's a nerd and the other a crime fighting badass._

_I miss you so much. Every now and then whenever I receive a text message or a phone call, I expect it to be from you. Every day that I'm not talking to you kills me. The nights, nights are the worst. That was when you would call and tell me about your day. Then you would tease me for being such a nerd when I geek out over my work. The only thing pulling me through is the thought of coming home to you after all this._

_So you better be in one piece by the time I return to Toronto._

_I don't know when I'll be able to write to you again, but you'll always be on my mind, in my heart. I'll wait for the day when you call me to tell me you're finally back._

_Love,_

_Holly_

_##########_

_Gail,_

_I have to confess to something. I just went on a date. It wasn't on purpose, I swear. Remember my neighbor, Gemma? She's been really nice to me since I moved in and we've grown kinda close, going on runs together and always bringing me baked goods. I told her I'm single but I didn't delve further into detail about us and she set me up with one of her friends tonight behind my back._

_Okay, it's not really behind my back, Gemma told me to meet her at a bar and then she ditched me with her friend, Elizabeth. I mean, I'm not upset or anything, I know Gemma means well but the whole time I felt like I was cheating on you!_

_I know you told me to have fun, go on dates and stuff but I really didn't plan on doing all those things without you. Elizabeth's a really nice person but she's not you. The whole time I just kept thinking about a certain incredibly beautiful blonde cop with a sparkling personality. I feel really bad about it. I didn't really pay a lot of attention to her and she didn't deserve that. But I paid for her drinks and sent her home, though. That was the least I could do._

_You've ruined women for me, Peck. There is no other person for me, except you. You're my person, Gail. So I need you to finish this assignment and come to San Francisco. Or I could find the time and fly back, even if it's just for a few hours. It doesn't matter, I just need to see you. To touch you._

_I love you,_

_Holly_

_##########_

_Gail,_

_I'm beginning to think that maybe I've made a mistake. Leaving Toronto and leaving you, I mean. The nights are longer and it's getting more difficult to wake up in the mornings. And you know me, I'm a morning person, so that's saying a lot._

_I've also been calling Traci to ask about you and the case, although I know she can't really tell me much, except that you're okay. I hope she doesn't find me irritating._

_Today's the day you've been undercover for exactly 6 months. You'll be done any second now and I can't wait to hear your voice again._

_I'll be waiting._

_I love you,_

_Holly_

_##########_

_Gail,_

_It's been 2 weeks and you're still not home yet. I waited and waited until I couldn't anymore and begged Traci to give me something, anything. She told me there's some new development on the case and you're going to take longer than planned to close it. How long more, she doesn't know. I just wish you're really okay. Damn it, this is getting a lot harder than I expected it to be. I'm sure you're doing amazing work, but I'm worried sick, Gail._

_You know, the other day when I was going to work, I thought I saw you. I was walking into the building and a woman with short blonde hair wearing a leather jacket was at the reception desk and I swear my heart stopped and I couldn't breathe. Because for a split second I thought it was you. I thought you wrapped up the case and flew here to see me. But those thoughts were shattered when the woman turned around and walked past me._

_And last night I was listening to the voice messages you sent me before you went undercover. You must think I'm pathetic, right? I'm losing my mind._

_I'm still praying for you, praying for this case to be done as soon as possible. For you to be free._

_I love you,_

_Holly_

_##########_

_Gail,_

_I have some good news. After months of research, test samples and failures, we finally got the result we wanted. As usual, I don't want to bore you with the details and I most certainly don't wish to start writing an essay here. I don't want you to fall asleep reading this. I can say all those words in person._

_Patrick brought us out for dinner and some drinks last night to celebrate our success. About 5 shots of tequila in, Sara and Matt got pretty drunk and our night got pretty epic. Sara singing karaoke drunk off her ass is quite entertaining. I hope the hangover that's waiting for them isn't that bad. We're given some time off and then it'll be press and publicity for our latest medical breakthrough. There's also going to be a dinner thing hosted by the organization._

_Ugh, I dreading it so much. I know I shouldn't complain, I should be proud of this, but I'm not doing this for the fame or money. You of all people know that. And 3 whole days of smiling and expressing gratitude is a bit too much even for me._

_I wish you were here to celebrate with me._

_I'm still waiting for the day when my phone rings and it's your name I see on the screen._

_I love you,_

_Holly_

_##########_

(2 weeks ago)

_Gail,_

_I'm writing this to you at the airport, waiting for the boarding call. I'm coming back to Toronto for good._

_I'm a well-established doctor, I have a job that doctors can only dream of, but I'm not happy. I live in a massive apartment in downtown San Francisco, I should be happy, but I'm not. The place is nice, but I don't feel at home at all. It's cold and empty with too many glass walls. It's stylish and modern, I guess. But you know that is just not my idea of a comfy and cozy home. I miss the wood flooring of my townhouse. The big cushiony leather couch in the living room. The huge bookcase in the study. My grandma's coffee table. My bed. When I open the door to my home, I want to see all those things. Most importantly, I want to see you in it._

_I've been offered with tons of job offers by various well-known organizations and institutions for the work I did in San Francisco and even in Toronto. I should be happy about my achievements, but I'm not. What's the point of such success when I don't have the person I love to share it with?_

_Patrick knew something was wrong. For someone who's a part of a dream team and doing the job of a lifetime, I'm not as ecstatic as I should be. He told he's been watching me for months (not in a creepy way, he assured me) and he can see that my heart's not here with me in San Francisco. I told him he was right. My heart's always been with you ever since you told that me you hate people._

_So I told Patrick everything – from meeting you, to being together, to our breakup, to getting back together again and to our breakup again. Do you know what he did? He "fired" me._

_Because the only way to break the contract without any penalty is for him to break it first. He told me to go back to Canada and to the person I love. So I'm doing that right now. I'll be eternally grateful to him._

_10 months ago, we agreed that it wasn't our time yet. That we need some time apart, to wait until the timing is right for us. I know me coming back doesn't necessarily mean that we'll immediately get back together again. It still might not be the right time, but I'm perfectly fine to do the waiting back in Toronto._

_So I'm coming back for you, for us, like I promised._

_I'll be waiting for you to come home safely. Probably with a bag of cheese puffs and the Star Wars marathon loaded on the TV._

_I love you,_

_Holly_

_##########_

Gail flipped the laptop shut, her face wet with fallen tears and her heart threatening to beat out of her chest. Holly was back. She had been back for two weeks. Without wasting another second, Gail stood up and raced towards the door, grabbing her keys that was on the counter. She still had Holly's car in the underground parking lot, if only she could remember where she parked it. When the lift reached the basement the doors opened, Gail strode across the parking lot, car key held high in one hand as she pressed the unlock button to spot the car.

Gail might've broken a few traffic rules and sped through several red lights, but she didn't care. She's Gail fucking Peck and she just saved the city from a drugs and human trafficking criminal, she was sure the police would stay out of her way.

By the time she got to Holly's townhouse, the sun was starting to rise and the sky was taking on a lighter shade of blue. She ran up the steps towards the front door. Holly might still be asleep, maybe she should've called first? _Too late,_ Gail was already knocking on the door, rapping her knuckles relentlessly on the hard surface. She mentally cursed herself. She should've brought her spare key along with her, but in the haste of making it to Holly's Gail had forgotten.

Her heart and stomach both clenched at the same time when she heard soft footsteps on the other side of the door, making its way toward her. In that moment, Gail swore it felt like the footsteps took forever to make it to the door. When the handle moved and the door finally opened in slow motion, she could see long wavy dark hair through the small crack, before the door swung back completely. Wide blue eyes locked onto warm brown ones, neither women moving from where they were rooted. Holly was right in front of her and smiling that fucking beautiful lopsided smile of hers.

Holly's eyes immediately snapped open at the first round of knocking. Her throat constricted and her pulse quickened. She had no doubt who was at the door this early in the day. The brunette flew out of bed and down the stairs in record speed, legs turning jelly when her feet landed on the floor. Through the translucent glass panel designed beside both sides of the door, she could see someone with blonde hair standing outside her front door. Her fingers trembled against the handle, counted to three with deep breaths, and finally pulled the door open.

The first thing Holly noticed was the piercing blue eyes staring back at her. God, she'd miss those eyes. Those eyes that never left hers when they made love. The way it shone when Holly would say those three words. Then it was natural darker blonde hair. Slightly longer than she remembered, hanging loosely around the base of the pale neck. Then the brunette's breath got caught in her throat at the sight of the adhesive bandage above Gail's right eyebrow and a dark bruise on her left cheek. But the smile that was currently plastered on the blonde's face was enough to let her know that Gail was okay.

Gail had been imagined Holly walking through 15's door, looking for the blonde with lunch in tow. She had imagined Holly behind the closed door of the morgue, performing autopsies whenever Gail was there for evidence results. She had imagined Holly to be at the batting cages every time Gail drove past one. Now that Holly was actually here in front of her, Gail couldn't help but wonder if her imagination was playing a trick on her. She decided to test that theory out.

"Hey."

"Hey. Welcome back." Holly's voice cracked, thick with emotion, but it was like music to Gail's ears.

"I could say the same."

"You read my emails."

Gail nodded. Then she smiled. A genuine smile that was reserved for the brunette that she lost over the past 10 months. She shivered as a breeze of cold wind hit her, suddenly remembering leaving her apartment without her jacket. She let herself get pulled into the brunette, to feel those warm lips against hers like it was yesterday. To feel the familiar weight of those tan arms snaking across her waist. Gail wasn't sure what Holly's return meant for them and their relationship. God knows what the future holds, but Gail felt like her heart was starting to slowly glue itself back together again.

"How about those cheese puffs and Star Wars marathon?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's it for 14 Days!
> 
> I know there might be some of you who wanted Gail to have the ultimate happy ending with Holly and Sophie, but it was never my intention to let that happen. I really hope you guys liked the ending and as usual, leave me reviews and comments because I wanna know what you think!
> 
> I would like to thank every single one of you who read this story and to those who followed, favorited and reviewed chapter after chapter. It really helped me a lot as encouragement to get the chapters out as soon as possible. Golly inspired me to write, hopefully this is not my last fic.
> 
> Thank you thank you thank you!


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